Private equity firm 8 Miles, associated with Irish rockstar and philanthropist Bob Geldof, has exited majority of its stake in Awash Wines, a leading wine producer in Ethiopia, for an undisclosed sum.
- The PE firm led a consortium to acquire 100% of Awash Wines in July 2013 and exited this September to a “strategic investor consortium.”
- Founded in 1936, Awash runs two wineries in Addis Ababa and makes many popular brands, including Axumit, Kemila, and Gouder.
- By 2020, 8 Miles had raised $150mn from several institutions including the African Development Bank, World Bank, and the British investment firm CDC.
Details of the transaction, which involve the sale of 89% in Awash Wines SC, are still scanty except that Verdant IMAP served as advisor. 8 Miles has previously invested in Verde Beef Processing (Ethiopia), Blue Skies Holding (South Africa, Egypt), Orient Bank Ltd (Uganda), and Biyinzika Poultry International (Uganda).
According to its website, the firm has exited all its investments on the continent except in Nigerian biscuit manufacturer Beloxxi Industries Ltd, in which it owns a 15% stake. In its first exit, in Uganda in 2021, 8 Miles and other shareholders sold equity totalling 90 percent in Orient Bank to I&M Holdings with the deal being concluded a year later. I&M, which is listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), has since rebranded the bank to I&M Bank Uganda.
In 2019, leaked documents from the Mauritius office of a Bermuda law firm showed 8 Miles, where Geldof serves as chairman, had set up operations in the tax haven of Mauritius for its investments on the continent. At the time, an 8 Miles spokesperson told the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists that the PE firms companies pay taxes in their home jurisdiction, and only proceeds from exits/sales, are channeled back through Mauritius.
