Boomtime for Geldof

3 September 2010 By Nicholas Paisner

The rock star wants to invest $1 billion in Africa. Even Goldman guru Jim O’Neill says the continent may be the next BRIC. Africa’s been the next big thing for ages. But there are reasons to think it’s different this time, and Geldof’s established connections will open doors.

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Bob Geldof plans to raise $1 billion for an African investment fund to be called 8 Miles, according to a person familiar with the situation. The distance between the southern tip of Europe and northern Africa is eight miles.

The fund will be run by Mark Florman, a former executive at private equity firm Doughty Hanson, and Gordon Moore, who previously worked at another private equity firm, Cinven.

The African Development Bank and the International Finance Corporation, the World Bank's private sector arm, have both offered to invest $50 million in the venture. Geldof has also committed an undisclosed amount of his own money.

Goldman Sachs' chief economist, Jim O'Neill, has predicted that the combined GDP of the 11 largest African economies could reach $13 trillion by 2050, making them bigger than either Brazil or Russia.

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