Deutsche Investitions-und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG), which is owned by the German federal and local governments as part of the KfW Group; ShoreCap III, a fund of US-based Equator Capital Partners; and Dutch investor Triple Jump recently collaborated to purchase minority equity stakes in BRAC Uganda Bank, a provider of microfinance and other services in Uganda. The sizes and prices of the stakes remain confidential.
Founded in 2006, BRAC Uganda is a unit of BRAC International, an NGO with roots in Building Resources Across Communities (BRAC) of Bangladesh. In March, BRAC Uganda acquired a license allowing it to accept deposits in addition to providing loans, although it also delivers education, gender-focused, agricultural research and health services. Regarding the potential for these non-financial services to help people improve their socio-economic status, the senior director of BRAC International’s Microfinance and Ultra-Poor Graduation Program, Shameran Abed, explained, “Becoming a bank is not the end in itself, but a means to an end.” As of 2019, BRAC Uganda has 159 branches and 213,000 financial services clients.
BRAC International provides microfinance, food security, community development, water, sanitation, disaster relief, social enterprise support and human rights advocacy in 13 countries in Asia and Africa. During 2017, BRAC International served 110 million people, of whom 6.2 million borrowed USD 3.8 billion from the institution’s affiliates.
DEG, which seeks to “promote private entrepreneurial initiatives in future markets,” entered into 111 investment agreements during 2017, valued at a total of EUR 1.6 billion (USD 1.8 billion). This resulted in a portfolio of EUR 8.3 billion (USD 9.3 billion) invested in 600 organizations in 83 countries.
Equator Capital focusses on “inclusive finance and capacity building.” Its ShoreCap International fund deployed USD 28 million in Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe starting in 2003. Its ShoreCap II, launched in 2009, invested USD 80 million in Africa and Asia. ShoreCap III, which was launched in 2017, focuses solely on Africa.
Triple Jump describes itself as “an impact-focused investment manager that provides meaningful and responsible investment opportunities in developing countries.” It has EUR 775 million (USD 871 million) in assets under management as of 2019.
Sources and Additional Resources
Information provided directly to MicroCapital by Equator Capital
BRAC Uganda webpage
http://www.bracinternational.nl/en/where-we-work/uganda/
DEG homepage
https://www.deginvest.de
Equator Capital homepage
http://www.equatorcap.net
Triple Jump homepage
https://triplejump.eu
BRAC International homepage
http://www.brac.net
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