Honoris United Universities Announces Partnership with Old Mutual Private Equity as New Majority Shareholder as Actis Realizes its Investment

4^th September 2025 – Honoris United Universities (“Honoris”), the first and largest pan-African private higher education platform, is pleased to announce that its majority shareholder will transition from Actis to Old Mutual Private Equity, part of Old Mutual Alternative Investments (“OMPE”).

This development marks a new chapter in Honoris’ journey, building on a successful period of growth, transformation, and impact.

Actis, a global investment firm focused on sustainable infrastructure, launched Honoris with the vision of combining the expertise of world-class institutions across Africa to increase access to quality and employability-focused education across the continent. Under Actis’ ownership, the Honoris platform has helped ensure a student-centric approach to building a transformed higher education sector, enabling it to transform more than 1.2 million lives to date across Africa.

Today, Honoris stands as a New Champion of the World Economic Forum, member of the United Nations Global Compact, and a leader in its mission to transform lives through relevant education for lifetime success. With a community of over 100,000 students across 26 cities, the network encompasses 16 institutions including multidisciplinary universities, specialized schools, and technical and vocational institutes, offering both in-person and online learning modalities.

The acquisition of Honoris aligns with OMPE’s strategic commitment to investing in transformative sectors with significant socio-economic impact. Under OMPE’s ownership, the business will be largely black owned, emphasising OMPE’s focus on inclusive economic growth and Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment in South Africa.

Honoris Group CEO, Dr. Jonathan Louw, commented: “As we transition our partnership from Actis to OMPE, our mission of Education for Impact remains unchanged. We will continue to increase access to quality education that transforms the lives of our students and their communities. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our faculty and staff for their focus on student centricity whilst reaching new heights to realize Africa’s potential.”

“Honoris has transformed more than 1.2 million lives to date, offering over 490 qualifications across a number of disciplines, and has recently achieved an 86% employability rate, a KPI now independently assured by Deloitte.”

Sami Cherif, Director at Actis, added: “Over the past decade, we’ve proudly built Honoris into the largest pan-African private higher education platform, partnering with like-minded founders and management across the continent. Our goal was to create high-quality universities that equip students with the skills needed in future employment – and we’re proud to have achieved that. We’ve helped shape the future of education in Africa, empowered students, and met the evolving needs of employers. We look forward to seeing Honoris continue to thrive under Old Mutual Private Equity’s ownership.”

Chumani Kula, Co-Head, Old Mutual Private Equity, commented: “As OMPE, we are pleased to be investing in Honoris, a world-class private higher education platform. Apart from the attractive investment merits and rationale, we are particularly excited about the sheer positive impact Honoris is able to make, at scale, in its admirable mission of providing a pathway to employability to so many learners through the provision of high-quality tertiary education that is both affordable and accessible. We look forward to partnering with a strong management team as it continues to play a market leading role in the private higher education sector across the continent.”

Financial terms of the transaction are undisclosed. The transaction remains subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Actis are advised by Rede Partners as exclusive financial advisor and Clifford Chance acted as legal advisor.