South Africa has made a strong showing in the annual Financial Times/Statista 2023 ranking of Africa’s 100 fastest-growing companies, with 33 companies making the list. Deimos Cloud, a provider of cloud and software services, was the highest-ranked South African company, ranking sixth overall.
The ranking, conducted for the second time this year, recognises companies that have experienced significant growth in the previous year, highlighting the most dynamic and successful businesses on the African continent.
Nigeria dominated the top spots on the list, with Abuja-based Afex Commodities Exchange coming in first place, providing brokerage and trade finance services for commodities such as maize, sorghum, cocoa, and rice. Over a three-year period, Afex achieved a compound annual growth rate of more than 500%. Moniepoint Inc., based in Lagos, was ranked second, with a compound annual growth rate of more than 321% over the last three years. Sokowatch, a Kenya-based e-commerce company, came in third place, with a compound annual growth rate of 242% during this time period.
During this time, Deimos Cloud experienced compound annual growth of 177%. BlueSky Digital Solutions (12th), Northam Platinum Holdings (23rd), Vertice MedTech Holdings (28th), Impala Platinum Holdings (29th), and Routed Hosting (31st) rounded out the top six South African companies on the ranking list.
Some well-known South African companies, such as Naspers and MTN Group, were ranked lower on the list. According to the Financial Times, Covid-19 appears to have accelerated the online transition, with companies providing digital services in finance, payments, trade facilitation, and healthcare all making progress. The ranking also revealed that investors in Silicon Valley, Asia, and Europe have recognised the potential of African start-ups, particularly in the tech hubs of Lagos, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Nairobi, and Cairo.
To be included in the ranking, companies had to meet a number of criteria, including generating at least US$100,000 in revenue in 2018, at least US$1.5 million in revenue in 2021, being an independent company and not a subsidiary or branch office of any kind, having its operational headquarters in one of the African countries, and primarily stimulating revenue growth internally between 2018 and 2021.
According to Deimos Cloud CEO Andrew Mori, the company’s outstanding performance in the latest ranking demonstrates the company’s unwavering commitment to providing innovative cloud and software services to businesses across Africa. “At Deimos, we believe in constantly pushing boundaries and setting new standards in our industry,” he said. “This honour demonstrates our dedication to providing innovative solutions to our clients.”
The Financial Times/Statista 2023 annual ranking of Africa’s 100 fastest-growing companies emphasises the continent’s growing importance in the global economy. With a growing middle class and a youthful population, Africa has enormous growth potential, and this ranking demonstrates that businesses across the continent are capitalising on that potential. The ranking helps to shine a light on the companies that are driving growth and creating jobs across the continent by recognising the most dynamic and successful businesses in Africa.
