September 08, 2004
Andisa to step beyond Botswana into Africa

DEBT and capital markets group Andisa Capital said this week it was intensifying efforts to expand into other African countries.

"We have a pipeline of deals that will make the second half of 2004 quite exciting for us," MD Chris Clarkson said yesterday.

"We are targeting countries where we see opportunities in debt and capital markets," Clarkson said, citing Tanzania, Madagascar, Kenya, Nigeria and Angola.

Africa has become the natural expansion destination for South African banks as well as telecommunications and other industrial companies.

Andisa has already been operating in Botswana its "footprint into Africa" for two years. Clarkson said Botswana's financial services market had developed "exponentially" in the past 18 months. Its capital market grew from 355-million pula to more than 4,4-billion pula in issuance.

Clarkson said the business of expanding into the continent would be channelled through Botswana's International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). Andisa Capital, as an IFSC company, looks to generate income from African countries other than SA and Botswana.

The IFSC is attractive to investors as it offers a guaranteed corporate tax rate of 15% and access to Botswana's expanding double taxation treaty network, at present comprising SA, UK, Mauritius, Sweden, France and India.

The IFSC initiative is part of Botswana's "vision 2016", which is to develop the country as a hub for cross- border and information communication technology -enabled financial services in Africa.

"The idea makes sense because it is also convenient, with Botswana being only an hour's flight from Johannesburg," Andisa head strategist David Galloway said.

source - Business Day