Zekarias Amsalu

Zekarias, born and bred in Ethiopia, is the Founder & MD of IBEX Frontier with presence in Washington DC USA, London UK and Addis Ababa Ethiopia. 

Zekarias has been at the forefront of providing deal sourcing, research, buy-side and sale-side Investment advisory and negotiation, and guiding international investors on bankable opportunities in Ethiopia. Starting from coining the term ‘Sheba Valley’ for Ethiopia’s tech space and representing and speaking on behalf of entrepreneurs in Ethiopia to providing investors’ guidance in route-to- Ethiopian-market, Zekarias is a ‘walking textbook’ of success in investing in Ethiopia. Zekarias leads a niche investment advisory team based in Addis Ababa/London/Washington DC as well as has co- investment partnership with key advisors across the globe. 

Zekarias is also a Board Advisory member for NY based Venture Capital firm Afrinet Capital as well as Silicon Valley based Africa Diaspora Network, organisations focused on inward investment into Africa. Zekarias is also the 2018 cohort of NextGen Investors of Invest Africa and has been featured on various international media including CNN, CGTN, Quartz Africa & Digest Africa among others. In September 2019, Forbes Africa has a special issue exclusively on Ethiopia entitled: Ethiopia: The Pride of Africa” and the on page 18, Zekarias has been featured as the reckoned connector to Investors and Route-to-Ethiopian Market advisory. 

In addition to his role as IBEX MD, Zekarias is also a Board Advisory member for NY based Venture Capital firm Afrinet Capital as well as Silicon Valley based Africa Diaspora Network, organisations focused on inward investment into Africa. 

Zekarias had a solid experience in Ethiopia, working as a East Africa Hub Treasury Manager for Shell Oil that led him to many continental awards for his breakthrough performance within Shell Oil as well as Ethiopian banking relationship. He also concurrently run a consultancy office in Ethiopia in 2002-2004 advising Ethiopian businesses before expanding his international exposure since his relocation to the London in 2004 and has since worked across industries in Europe/USA. He has re- tuned his focus on Ethiopia and Africa and as a result has founded IBEX Frontier in early 2016 and has been providing route-to-market and deal sourcing services for Ethiopian focused international investors and investment advisory to Ethiopian businesses. 

Zekarias is a Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA) and an MBA Graduate of Oxford Brookes University in the UK. 

RESEARCH AND ARTICLES 

Zekarias has written and commented extensively on bridging the information gap between Ethiopia’s business opportunities and helped provide Visibility, Access and Opportunity to Ethiopia’s investment opportunities. 

Some Selected Research/Investment Articles Zekarias authored and/or contributed by:- 

• Forbes Africa September 2019: “Connecting Investors with Opportunity” https://buff.ly/2ZI8nDd 
• Zekarias selected as Global Top 100 Under 40 Most Influential Person of African Descent 2018 https://lnkd.in/gPa5zsQ 
• Ethiopia’s 2018 TECH Investment Report https://www.ibexfrontier.com/single-post/2019/01/13/IBEX-DIGEST-2018-TECH-STARTUP- FUNDING-for-ETHIOPIA 
• Ethiopia’s 2017 TECH investment report https://www.ibexfrontier.com/single-post/2018/10/26/IBEX-DIGEST-2017-TECH-STARTUP- FUNDING-%E2%80%93-ETHIOPIA-Changing-The-Narrative 
• Zekarias has authored Ethiopia’s first FDI, M&A and EXIT Report for 2017 https://lnkd.in/dPjPYKd. 
• On ‘Investing in Ethiopia- Why Now?’ https://lnkd.in/dKWZjtA 
• Leading Ethiopia’s Tech Innovators to Paris for Investor Round Table and Press Coverage https://qz.com/africa/1301583/ethiopias-tech-startups-are-confident-change-is-coming-at- just-the-right-time/ 
• On Ethiopia’s Technology Opportunity 

http://afridigest.com/sheba-valley-making-ethiopias-tech-sector/ 

• Research contribution to and Interview provided for CNN article on Ethiopia’s Wind Power:- 

http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/20/africa/ethiopia-wind-power/ 

• On a Hospitality/Real Estate Investment Opportunity 

https://newbusinessethiopia.com/investment-alert/ 

• On Bridging the gap between Silicon Valley and Sheba Valley 

https://www.ibexfrontier.com/single-post/2018/02/07/SHEBA-VALLEY-to-SILICON-VALLEY- Bridging-The-Eco-System-Gap–IBEX-Frontiers-Initiative