MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Lok Capital of Mauritius Seeking $100m for Third Fund, First Round Scheduled to Close by April 2015

Lok Capital, a Mauritius-based venture capital fund that focuses on microfinance and other social businesses in India, reportedly is seeking to raise USD 100 million for a new fund that will focus on financial inclusion as its key priority, with agriculture and energy as secondary areas of interest [1]. The target for the fund’s first close is April 2015. Lok Capital previously raised USD 22 million for its first fund, Lok Capital I, in 2006 and USD 65 million for its second fund, Lok Capital II, in 2012.

As of 2013, Lok Capital reported USD 87 million under management [2].

By Nisha Koul, Research Associate

About Lok Capital: The Lok Capital Initiative was founded in 2000 with support from the US-based nonprofit Rockefeller Foundation. Its goal is to “promote inclusive growth by supporting the development of social enterprises to deliver basic services to serve the BoP [base of the pyramid] segment in a scalable, affordable and commercially viable manner.” The initiative is comprised of Lok Capital, a Mauritius-based venture capital fund that places equity and equity-linked investments in microfinance institutions (MFIs) and social enterprises in the education, healthcare and “livelihoods” sectors; and the Lok Foundation, a nonprofit entity that provides “specialized funding and long-term technical assistance for financial and social inclusion.” Lok Capital makes its investments through two funds, Lok Capital I and II. Lok Capital I was launched in 2006 with USD 22 million in investments from Accion, The Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC), Développement international Desjardins, Netherlands Development Finance Company (also known by its Dutch acronym FMO), International Finance Corporation (IFC), Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) and responsAbility Social Investments. The fund’s investments generally range in size from USD 500,000 to USD 3 million. Lok Capital II was closed in 2012 with USD 65 million. Its investors included previous Lok investors IFC, CDC, KfW, FMO and responsAbility along with new investors Proparco and ASN Novib.

Sources and Additional Resources:

[1] The Economic Times, Venture capital firm Lok Cap looks to raise up to Rs 600 crore

[2] Lok Capital, Social Performance Management Report 2012-2013

MicroCapital Story, Lok Capital, Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, Bellwether Microfinance Fund Exit Janalakshmi Financial Services of India

MicroCapital Story, Lok Capital, Creation Investments Invest Total of $13m in Indian Microfinance Institution Equitas Holdings

MicroCapital Universe Profile, Lok Capital

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