Citadel Capital has amassed one of the world's largest pools of investment capital according to a report from Private Equity International that finds the firm is the 75th largest in the world Citadel Capital has raised $4.1 billion in equity for investment in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) since 2004, making the firm the largest private equity investor in Africa and the seventy-fifth largest globally, according to Private Equity International's PEI 300, an annual ranking of the largest international private equity firms based on funds raised in the previous five years. In the same period, the firm has generated $2.2 billion in cash returns to investors, more than any other private equity firm in the MENA region. “Citadel Capital's model is differentiated in that we are a principal investor, not just an asset manager,” said Citadel Capital Chairman and Founder Ahmed Heikal. “We align interests by raising opportunity-specific funds focused on specific deals or industries, inviting our regional limited partners and co-investors to invest alongside Citadel Capital, and always taking at least a 10 percent stake ourselves in these OSFs.” Citadel Capital is a control investor that looks to grow national and regional leaders in sectors supported by MENA's natural advantages (low energy and, in certain countries, low labor costs), by positive macro aspects of emerging market investing (favorable demographics; supportive government reforms; emerging, un-leveraged consuming class) and by geographical advantages (the Suez Canal as a global trade corridor, low outbound freight costs from North Africa to Europe).
