Amy Eliason

Director
Johannesburg
About
Amy has more than 13 years of experience advising private equity funds, financial institutions and corporates on complex transactions across South Africa and the broader African market. Her practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, equity capital markets and private equity investments, including IPOs, cross-border transactions and large-scale restructurings. She has extensive experience leading transactions involving multiple jurisdictions, stakeholders and regulatory frameworks.

Amy regularly acts on high-value and strategically significant deals, including public listings, acquisitions and joint ventures in regulated sectors. My recent experience includes advising on JSE listings, private equity exits, fintech transactions and multi-jurisdictional mergers across Africa.

Her sector experience includes financial services, insurance, fintech, consumer goods, life sciences and renewable energy.
Areas of FocusCorporateMergers and AcquisitionsInsurance
Professional QualificationsAttorney of the High Court of South Africa, 2015

EXPERIENCE

  • Advised Cell C Limited (Cell C) and Cell C Holdings Limited (Cell C Listco) in a pre listing restructuring between Cell C and its shareholders, aimed at optimising Cell C’s capital structure and balance sheet in preparation for the listing of Cell C Listco on the main board of the JSE.
  • Advising Premier Group and Brait Mauritius on the listing of all Premier’s ordinary shares on the main board of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), and on the offer for sale by Brait of Premier ordinary shares to selected investors by way of a ZAR3.5 billion bookbuild.
  • Advising Sanlam Life Insurance, Sanlam Personal Loans, SPL Services and Tyme Bank on the establishment of a joint venture focused on unsecured personal loans with an embedded credit life offering. 
  • Advising FirstRand Bank on its acquisition of the Slow Lounge business from Comair for ZAR250 million. 
  • Advising Brait Mauritius Limited in relation to the sale of its stake in DGB Proprietary Limited, one of South Africa’s leading wine and spirit producers and distributors, to a major South African private equity fund.
  • Advising E4 Strategic Proprietary, a specialist fintech, on its acquisition by a consortium of private equity investors led by Infinite Partners for more than ZAR1 billion.
  • Advising Dogstar Mauritius, a majority shareholder in renewable energy services provider Starsight Energy on its merger with South African-based solar firm, SolarAfrica Energy.
  • Advising (as South African local counsel) nCino, a leading global financial technology company, on the USD75 million acquisition of DocFox, a global end-to-end software solution and onboarding service provider for commercial and business banks.
  • Advising CoMind Technology, a life sciences company focusing on the development of innovative neuromonitoring devices and neural interfaces on series B investment round. 
  • Advising a private equity firm in its acquisition of a stake in a South African private company predominantly involved in the health food business.
     
Languages
  • English
Education
  • University of the Witwatersrand, LLB (cum laude), 2012
  • University of the Witwatersrand, Bachelor of Commerce with Honours in Finance, (cum laude), 2010
  • University of Witwatersrand, Bachelor of Commerce, (cum laude), 2009

Publications

  • "Is action on Ayo a no-no?", Business Day, 2019.
  • "Crowdfunding and the US$40,000 potato salad", Without Prejudice, 2014
  • "Welcome to South Africa…I think", Without Prejudice, 2013
  • "The Infrastructure Development Bill - under renovation", Lexology.com, 2012

My latest insights

News
Programming_Code_S_23091910520

DLA Piper advises Kleoss Fund II on its investment into the Hirt & Carter Group

13 February 2026

Events

Virtual M&A Academy 2025

27 October 2025 .2 minute read

News

DLA Piper advises on Sanlam TymeBank retail credit joint venture

29 May 2025 .2 minute read

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Phone

+27 21 818 6411
(Work, Johannesburg)
+27 (0)64 880 8922
(Mobile)