Top Australian recruitment portal Seek is extending its international reach with a 25 per cent stake in One Africa Media.

Christo Volschenk and Ross Hoddinott of AIM Group report that the US$20 million investment in Africa's leading classifieds company values One Africa Media at US$80 million.

Created late last year, One Africa owns or invests in the recruitment sites Jobberman (Nigeria) and Brighter Monday (Kenya); auto site Cheki (Kenya, Nigeria); real estate site Private Property (Nigeria, South Africa) and travel site Safari Now (South Africa).

One Africa was launched when Kenya-based Carey Eaton and South Africa-based Justin Clarke merged their classified businesses.

It is majority owned (53 per cent) by Tiger Global, a New York-based investment manager that is also majority owner of Navent, which operates some of the leading recruitment and real estate advertising sites in Latin America.

 “OAM’s businesses and operations are in countries with rapidly growing Internet and mobile penetration rates,” Seek said in its announcement. “OAM has a track record of revenue growth but is investing in building marketplaces and is not currently profitable. OAM will utilize the majority of Seek’s investment to fund further growth in its portfolio and will continue to reinvest to capture the large Mark opportunities across Africa.”

Seek, which is highly profitable, funded the investment from its cash reserves. One Africa will have a cash balance of about US$22 million following the transaction.

Seek has expanded both vertically and horizontally in its development. With little more growth available in Australia, it moved into takeovers in Malaysia and then China, followed by Brazil. Horizontally it has moved into education, offering English language courses and testing along with international student recruitment in partnership with a conglomerate of all Australian Universities.

Its chairman is one-time media mogul, now casino mogul, James Packer.

Seek’s international holdings include 78.2 per cent of Zhaopin in China; a majority interest in JobsDB (Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong and more); a minority stake in JobStreet (Southeast Asia); 57 per cent of Online Career Center in Mexico, and 51 percent of Brasil Online.