Africa-focused asset manager Enko Capital has secured US $100 million in its first close of a new private credit vehicle, designed to finance mid-market companies across sub-Saharan Africa with a strong emphasis on renewable energy, agriculture and other sustainable sectors.
The vehicle, dubbed the Enko Impact Credit Fund (EICF), has a target of US $150 million at final close and a hard cap of US $200 million. Enko Capital, currently managing around US $1.3 billion in assets, intends to provide U.S. dollar-denominated debt financing to established, cash-generating companies operating in non-cyclical sectors, including agriculture, telecommunications, manufacturing, renewable energy and financial services.
Lead institutional investors in the first close include the British International Investment (BII) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the latter committing up to US $25 million or 20% of the fund’s commitments.
Why this matters
- Many African mid-sized firms, especially in agriculture and renewable energy, face a financing gap, particularly for longer-tenor debt in hard currency. This fund seeks to close that gap.
- By targeting sectors such as agriculture and renewable energy, Enko is aligning capital deployment with sustainable development goals while also appealing to impact-orientated investors seeking risk-adjusted returns.
- The participation of BII and IFC signals growing institutional confidence in Africa’s private credit market and the commercial viability of deploying capital into sustainable business models on the continent.
Strategic use of funds & deployment focus
According to reports, the fund will be used to provide flexible tailored credit (senior secured, unsecured, and hybrid structures with possible guarantee or insurance wraps) to companies that have proven business models and revenue streams. It will specifically focus on enterprises in the agriculture value chain (including agro-inputs, processing, and distribution), renewable energy projects (especially distributed, mid-scale plants), manufacturing, and other sectors that enable economic growth and job creation.
Managing Partner Alain Nkontchou of Enko remarked that the fund “underscores growing investor confidence in Africa’s sustainable development through private credit.”
With the first close achieved, Enko Capital is now well-positioned to roll out its investments across the stated sectors. If the fund reaches its target of US $150 million (or more), it could become a benchmark private-credit vehicle in Africa’s sustainable development finance toolbox. The success of this deployment could also attract further institutional capital and signal a maturation of the continent’s financing ecosystem for agriculture and renewable energy.
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