Private equity in emerging markets : a comparison between South Africa's and Brazil's private equity industries

Abstract

The annual Global Venture Capital and Private Equity Country Attractiveness index which is sponsored by IESE Business school, Ernest&Young and Emlyon Business School, benchmarks the attractiveness of 116 countires for receiving institutional private equity and venture capital allocations. The factors used in determining this ranking are based on the findings from a study conducted by Groh, Liechtenstein and Leiser, (2008). South Africa was ranked 26th above Brazils' 43rd for the 2010 year meaning that as per the indexes criteria's, South Africa should be more attractive desitnation for private equity and venture capital investments over Brazil, yet the aggregate private equity deal value in South Africa in 2010 was US$1.5 billion (2009:24), while Brazil ranked 11th with aggregate deal value of US$6.3 billion (2009:US$940 million, ranking 26th) for the same period (KPMG 2011; Ernst&Young 2011).The objective of this study was to gain understanding into factors that are contributing to the attractiveness of private equity investments into Brazil through the testing of the key drivers as documented by Groh et al. (2008), and incorporating the findings of Leeds (2003) and Klonowski (2011).Throught the use of semi-structured, in-depth expert interviews, this study supported earlier studies such as that by Klonowski (2011) who contributed growth in PE investements inflow to not just the population size of a country but the ability of the inhabitants of that country to drive or stimulate local demand through the purchasing power of the emerging middle class. In the case for Brazil, the norms that have applied in other emerging markets including South Africa in relation to investor and property protection rights, administrative burdens, corporate governance and the quality of legal enforcement do not apply, or at least not to the same extent as experienced in those markets. Lastly the Study established that private equity industry itself can impact attractiveness levels both positively and negatively.