Skip to main content

Venture Capital Fund, Injaro signs GH¢25m agreement to support SMEs

 

THE VENTURE Capital Trust Fund (VCTF) has signed agreement with Injaro Investment Advisors Limited (Injaro) as part of efforts to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the country.

Under the agreement, VCTF has committed $25 million to Injaro under its special equity fund dubbed Injaro Ghana Venture Capital Fund (IGVCF), meant to support more viable SMEs in the country.

The money is part of the $150 million equity fund being put together by IGVC.

The proposed 10-year fund will be targeting eight small and medium enterprises in food and agriculture, inclusive financial services, healthcare, education, manufacturing and industrial services.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Venture Capital Fund, Yaw Owusu-Brempong, signed on behalf of VCTF while the Managing Director (MD) of Injaro, Jerry Parkes, appended his signature for the Injaro Investment Advisors.

The GH¢150 million equity fund is being raised from resources such as local pension funds and international investors.

Signing ceremony

Speaking at the signing ceremony in Accra, Mr Parkes observed that the fund was expected to inject between GH¢10 million and GH¢15 million per investment.

“The start-ups we are targeting are not early-stage businesses but those that have demonstrated a track record of success, revenue, and proven business model.

“And our capital will be aimed at helping small businesses to scale up, grow and become more profitable in order to make a meaningful impact in the society.

“It is a 10-year fund with a target size of GH¢150 million but we are willing to go up to GH¢200 million if we are oversubscribed,” he said.

Economic transformation

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Venture Capital Fund, Yaw Owusu-Brempong, said the agreement between the two parties was the first investment under the Ghana Economic Transformation Project (GETP).

He said this was a very momentous event for the Trust Fund, and more importantly for the venture capital ecosystem in the country.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the World Bank and the Ministry of Finance for considering the Trust Fund as a beneficiary under the GETP.

“The funding from this project has recapitalised the Trust Fund with an amount of $40 million.

“I am very happy today because I know that I am committing to this fund and will never default on capital calls from the fund manager because the funds are available,” he said.

He also used the opportunity to congratulate the board and executive of Injaro Investment Advisors, fund managers of Injaro Ghana Venture Capital Fund (IGVCF) for being the first to benefit from the Strategic Industries Fund (SI Fund).

He said the IGVCF was leveraging funding from the pensions industry for the transformation of small and medium enterprises, especially viable young enterprises.

VCTF’s role

The Head of Financial Market and Innovation at the Ministry of Finance (MoF), Benjamin Torsah-Klu, said the VCTF played a key role in the development of the economy.

This, he said, was done through promotion of innovation, improving capacity of businesses and creating jobs via the various employment opportunities.

He said the VCTF had undergone restructuring after which the World Bank Group under the GETP had recapitalised it with $40 million to enable it to fund more viable start-ups.

The move is to help revive the trust fund and strengthen it to provide funding for investors for the transformation of SMEs,” he said.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Zoomlion Advocates Community & Gender inclusive waste management for Climate Action at COP 29

 Africa's waste management giant, Zoomlion Ghana Limited has advocated for an integrated approach to waste management that considers the interest of community members, women and vulnerable groups. James Deku, a Communications Officer of Zoomlion Ghana Limited made this call at the 29th session of the Conference Of Parties (COP 29) of the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) at Azerbaijan, Baku whiles speaking on the topic "Community-Driven and Gender Inclusive approaches to waste management for Climate Action ". He said the waste sector is a major contributor of methane emissions which is a potent greenhouse gas causing climate change hence the need to manage waste in a manner that considers the interest of all stakeholders. Zoomlion's waste management model is designed and operated in a manner that considers the interest of all stakeholders. Through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model, local authorities engage community members in clea

Anglogold Ashanti Obuasi Mine tops 2024 Sustainability & Social Investment Awards

 AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine has confirmed its status as sustainability champions by sweeping nine awards, the most won by a company at the 2024 Sustainability & Social Investment Awards (SSI) held at Movenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra. The feat comes on the heels of a dominant performance in last year's event where AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine swept seven awards. The SSI Awards organised by Ianmatsun Global Services recognizes the most outstanding sustainability, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives in the country and beyond as well as the best teams and individuals who brought them to life. This year's event, which was the 8th edition, was under the theme "Climate Action Now: Accelerating Decarbonization and Building Resilience". The awards won by AngloGold Ashanti on the night include SSI Company of the Year, Best Company in Women Empowerment (project), SSI Company of the Year ( Environment), Best Co

Ghana Home Loans

With interest rates declining, a more liquid environment and a macroeconomic stability, mortgage financing is expected to see an ease of credit. And Ghana Home Loans being a leader in this industry is expected to lead the way. Ghana Home Loans (GHL), a leader in home mortgage, continues to be the frontier in fulfilling dreams of many Ghanaians in homeownership. Since starting business in 2006, it has also provided many existing homeowners with Equity Release mortgages to support their businesses, pay educational fees, improve their properties, or simply pursue other personal hobbies and interests. Ghana Home Loans is a mortgage finance institution which operates under Bank of Ghana’s supervision as a non-bank financial institution. At present, the Company remains the only such institution that focuses exclusively on the provision of mortgage product. Through the Home Completion mortgage and Home Construction mortgage products, Ghana Home Loans has enabled many qualified applican