​​​John P. Causey IV is the Founder and Managing Director of Afrika Vantage, an advisory firm and newsletter reaching over 13,000 decision-makers at pension funds, endowments, private equity firms, family offices, DFIs, and corporates. His interest in Africa took root during his service as a Peace Corps volunteer on the Cameroon-Nigeria border in 2002–2003.

In 2012, John shifted his career to focus on sub-Saharan Africa, leaving Morgan Stanley to pursue a Master’s in Finance at the University of Cape Town, the highest-ranked university in Africa and the Middle East. The thesis earned a distinction and assessed syndicated private equity transactions in Africa involving both global and local investors.

Between 2012 and 2016, John advised on over $500 million in investment and advisory transactions across the continent, including facilitating $4.2 million in seed funding for South African ventures at a time when startup capital was extremely scarce. Notably, one of those ventures became Apple’s most downloaded app globally for a month, while another recently raised a $50 million Series A.

In 2016, John was appointed CEO of Novare Group’s Zambia operations, where he established the country office and led the development of three grade-A shopping malls and the Standard Chartered Bank’s Zambia head office. The developments consist of 695,000 ft² (64,500 m²) and were financed through Novare’s $480 million private equity real estate development fund, with debt from Stanbic, Standard Chartered, and the IFC.

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Additionally, during his tenure in Zambia John led the origination and signed the largest lease by economic value in Novare’s history—the head office lease with Standard Chartered Bank Zambia. He also originated and led the transaction for Novare’s first and only investment from the IFC, structured as debt financing for two shopping mall developments.

In 2024, John returned to Novare Group as interim CEO of its West Africa operations, based in Lagos. In a short period, he originated and closed a $100 million joint venture between Novare and a U.S. technology firm (i.e., ReElement) to bring critical and rare earth refining capacity to Africa. The transaction marked Novare’s most significant milestone since the launch of its private equity funds a decade earlier. Additionally, he implemented a pipeline management system, trained key staff, secured an external building management mandate, and devised and led the spin-off transaction of Novare’s shared office platform into NovaHUB.

 

Education:

 

• Master’s in Finance, University of Cape Town

• MBA, International Business Concentration, Northern Kentucky University

• Certificate in Commercial Real Estate Analysis & Investment, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

• Juris Doctor, Chase College of Law, North Carolina & Arizona Bar Admissions (Inactive)

• Bachelor’s in Psychology, University of Louisville