SDG-focused platform to pump $500m into emerging markets

The underlying funds include the CARE SheTrades Fund, an Asia-focused gender lens vehicle expected to back companies that are run by women, promote female employment, or improve the livelihoods of women. Three more funds will operate across emerging and frontier markets, targeting agriculture, early-stage enterprises, and healthcare, respectively, while the last two concentrate on Africa and Latin America specifically.

The funds will use debt and equity to invest at seed, Series A and Series B stages with a view to addressing the financing gap that exists in emerging and frontier markets whereby entrepreneurs struggle to obtain follow-on funding. An estimated $2.5 trillion a year is required to fill this gap and achieve the SDGs by 2030, according to a statement.

Each fund will feature a “catalytic first loss layer” designed to protect senior tranches of funding. Catalytic first-loss capital financing usually sees the provider take a junior equity or debt position in the capital structure or make grants and offer guarantees that cover a certain amount of losses. In this instance, the providers are governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

The public sector organizations backing the SDG500 platform include two UN agencies – the UN Capital Development Fund and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) – and the International Trade Center, a multilateral body backed by the UN and WTO. Further contributions come from NGOs CARE, Smart Africa, and Stop TB Partnership.

“The missing middle financing gap is real, and it is suffocating early-stage enterprises which have the potential to transform some of the world’s poorest and most underdeveloped regions. We believe that by working together to finance and scale these businesses, we can achieve the SDGs and take another step closer to a better, more sustainable future for all,” said Jean-Philippe de Schrevel, Bamboo Capital’s founder and managing partner.

Bamboo Capital makes investments that deliver positive social and financial value, chiefly operating in the energy, healthcare and financial services sectors. Founded in 2007, it has nearly $400 million under management and a portfolio that spans 30 countries. Seven of its current investee companies are based in Asia.

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• Topics
• Fundraising
• Venture
• Asia
• Impact investment
• ESG
• Bamboo Capital