Jeremy Sampson, Managing Director at Brand Finance Africa said the 150 Africa’s most valuable brands are made up largely of Telecommunications companies, Banks, and Insurance companies. These brands amass a total value of US$10.4 billion, US$ 12.5 billion and US$3.8 billion respectively. MTN leads the chart as Africa’s most valuable brand followed by Vodacom and FNB (First National Bank).
The Impact of COVID-19
Brand Finance a UK-based independent brand valuation and strategy consultancy that specializes in brand valuation and the valuation of intangible assets came up with the figure based on the assessment of the impact COVID-19 has had on enterprise value, compared to what it was on 1st January 2020.
Analyzing the impact on enterprise value, Brand Finance estimated the likely impact on brand value for each sector. The industries have been classified into three categories, which are,
• limited impact (minimal brand value loss or potential brand value growth),
• moderate impact (up to 10% brand value loss), and
• heavy impact (up to 20% brand value loss) which is based on the level of brand value loss observed for each sector in the first quarter of 2020.
In a release sighted by Ghana Talks Business, Jeremy Sampson said despite the loss, Telecommunication companies “are in a very good position to benefit from COVID,” since “people are staying at homes, they are on their computers and smartphones.”
“The areas that are losing out by a long, long way are the airlines, and tourism, and hotels.” Jeremy Sampson further said.
According to Jeremy Sampson, the continent is still heavily unbranded given that of the 150 Africa’s most valuable brand, South Africa makes up 87 of those brands.
Africa Unbranded
Declan Ahern, Valuation Director at Brand Finance said “No truly Pan-African brands exist, with even the highest-performing brands in the ranking often only operating out of their home countries and therefore finding themselves a complete unknown across the continent and globally. It is no surprise that South Africa is by far the most represented economy in the ranking, with 87 brands featuring, which account for 76% of the total brand value.”
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“There is no denying that the African market remains immature and fragmented in comparison to its global counterparts. The lack of connectedness between nations across the continent means that brands’ growth is being stifled and they are unable to flourish beyond their home markets. This does pose, however, a great opportunity for African brands to develop in a market ripe for consolidation and M&A,” Jeremy Sampson also said.
