Nigerian brands at $3.2bn trail South Africa’s $36.9bn valuation

BY MADUABUCHI EFEGADI

South African brands with value up by 30 percent to $36.9 billion, and clearly leading the African continent, dwarfed Nigerian brands which value, up by 35 percent. came to just $3.2 billion in valuation, according to Brand Finance’s latest brand valuation report.

Nigerian brands however were slightly ahead of Egyptian brands whose value rose by 42 percent to $3.1 billion, Moroccan brands (value up by 14 percent to $2.6 billion), and Kenyan brands (value up by 69% to $2.1 billion).

The valuation put Africa’s top 150 most valuable and strongest brands which are included in the annual Brand Finance Africa 150 ranking.

According to the report, African brand values on the whole achieved growth by leveraging digital transformation.

Jeremy Sampson, managing director, Brand Finance Africa, said: “African brands have achieved strong performances by being agile amid change in the business environment. Whilst South African brands will continue to dominate the ranking for some time, there are encouraging signs of strong brands emerging around the continent, especially amongst the banking and telecommunication sectors.”

MTN, South African-based Africa’s telco giant saw its brand value rise 49 percent to $4 billion and it retained the No.1 position in the ranking of the most valuable African brands in the world, according to the new Brand Finance Africa 150 2022 report.

Brand Finance, the leading brand valuation consultancy said apart from telecommunications, MTN as the leading brand has diversified its services into fintech and mobile money across Africa.

“MTN’s Mobile Money (MoMo) application is performing exceedingly well and overtook its competition M-Pesa (brand value up 32% to US$246 million) by Safaricom in terms of volume of financial transactions through the application with a loyal customer base of 57 million active users,” the valuation report said.

The report said African brands have benefited significantly from adapting to uncertain business conditions caused by COVID-19 by leveraging technological disruption to tackle supply chain issues and national lockdowns. Brands from diverse sectors including banking, telecommunications and food & beverage found innovative ways to connect with the customers online. This digital transformation helped the top brands in Africa achieve a 28 percent increase in aggregate brand value to $50.1 billion.

Building strong brands across Africa fuels growth in the economy which is creating more dynamic jobs in the long-term, the report added.

Every year, Brand Finance puts 5,000 of the world’s biggest brands to the test, and publishes around 100 reports, ranking brands across all sectors and countries. Africa’s top 150 most valuable and strongest brands are included in the annual Brand Finance Africa 150 ranking.

Other African brands that saw speedy brand value increases are: Kenyan beer brand Tusker with an impressive 132 percent brand value growth this year, more than doubling to $50 million in brand value.

Capitec Bank, a South African lender, emerged as the strongest brand in Africa with AAA+ brand rating. With brand value up 41 percent to $625 million and a brand strength index (BSI) score of 92.4 out of 100 and a corresponding brand rating of AAA+, the lender formed strategic partnerships to keep up with market and sector-wide trends in online banking and digital transformation.

The Brand Finance report said the banking sector has the most valuable brands in Africa, followed by telecom and retail. Banking brands including Standard Bank (brand value up 26 percent to $1.6 billion), First National Bank (brand value up 18 percent to $1.6 billion) and Absa (brand value up 16 percent to $1.4 billion) are contributing to the success of African brands significantly with 26 percent of the total brand value growth. The growth of African banks in the ranking is facilitated by focusing on digital payments and online banking.

Similarly, the telecommunications sector led by MTN (brand value up 49% to $4.0 billion), Vodacom (brand value up 18 percent to $2.0 billion), and Maroc Telecom (brand value up 12 percent to $851 million) is also focusing on mobile applications as a strategic means to engage with users. Telecom brands have relied on growth in internet usage and mobile data requirements with major brands pivoting to a primarily digital strategy.

Retail brands such as South African Woolworths (brand value up 53 percent to $1.2 billion), Shoprite (brand value up 37 percent to $1.0 billion) and Spar SA (brand value up 44 percent to $1.0 billion) have recovered from the impact of the pandemic with their impressive ability to adapt to changing customer needs in a time of economic disruption.

Brand Finance, based in London, UK and with offices in over 20 countries, is the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy. Bridging the gap between marketing and finance for more than 25 years, it evaluates the strength of brands and quantifies their financial value to help organisations maximise the value of their marketing investments and make other strategic decisions.