MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Equator Raises $62m for ShoreCap III from AfDB, CDC, EIB, KfW, OeEB to Invest in Financial Inclusion in Africa

Equator Capital Partners, a US-based manager of “impact” funds, recently announced the first close of its third ShoreCap fund, which will invest in African firms offering services such as microcredit, microinsurance, leasing, housing finance, and banking for small and medium-sized enterprises. Equator is seeking to raise a total of USD 150 million for ShoreCap III to invest over 10 years in about 15 companies. The first close includes a total of USD 62 million invested in unspecified portions by a variety of government-backed organizations: the African Development Bank, the UK-based CDC Group, the European Investment Bank, Germany’s Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), and Austria’s Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank (OeEB).

Equator CEO Franklin Kennedy explained that the investment round includes “our first collaboration with the African Development Bank, an ideal partner to our impact investing strategy and our goal of strengthening financial services companies focused on the inclusive enterprise sector in Africa.”

Between 2003 and 2014, Equator invested USD 28 million in 15 financial institutions through the first ShoreCap fund, ShoreCap International. In 2009, Equator raised USD 80 million for ShoreCap II, which it invested in 10 firms, two of which it has exited as of 2018. The two funds reportedly reached 8 million people in 26 countries, creating 16,000 jobs and expending USD 20 million on 22 capacity building programs.

Sources and additional resources

Information provided directly to MicroCapital by Equator Capital

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