Liechtenstein-based Adolf H. Lundin Charitable Foundation has deployed a range of financial tools to invest more than $110 million in African companies and funds. Its Nairobi-based group AHL Venture Partners has focused for the last six years on debt deals. “We see ourselves as an on-ramp for private capital looking to allocate for impact and returns in the African market,” said AHL’s Rosanne Whalley. The firm sees debt as a “more liquid, risk-managed and scalable pathway for investors seeking both financial returns and long-term developmental impact.” It has reached a $30.5 million first close for its first Africa Credit Fund, backed by its parent foundation and three family offices. The fund will provide working capital, bridge loans and mezzanine debt to companies addressing financial inclusion, climate change and agriculture and food systems.
Debt portfolio
Despite some worrisome broader market signals, impact LPs have gravitated to private credit funds, which offer more liquidity and exit certainty than equity funds.
The Africa Credit Fund is geared toward wealthy individuals, families and foundations. The fund’s portfolio includes Robust International, which processes and exports cashew and sesame seeds, as well as Burn Manufacturing, the People’s Pension Trust, Wasoko and Ampersand. The nine fund managers it has invested in include XSML Capital, responsAbility, I&P, and AfricInvest.