In a groundbreaking stride towards empowering African enterprises, REGMIFA proudly announces a significant boost from its long-standing partner: FMO, the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank. FMO’s latest pledge of an additional USD 10 million investment into B-shares marks their unwavering commitment since 2010. This significant capital injection is set to support REGMIFA’s portfolio growth across Sub-Saharan Africa, delivering critical financial support to micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises, as well as low- and middle-income households through carefully chosen financial institutions.
Dedicated to fostering diverse financial ecosystems, the Fund collaborates with a variety of entities, including microfinance institutions, innovative fintech startups, and mid-sized banks focused on SME financing. These strategic investments are instrumental in advancing key sectors such as education, agriculture, and clean energy, alongside traditional microfinance and SME banking. REGMIFA places a strong emphasis on sustainability, ensuring that all loan recipients adhere to rigorous Environmental & Social risk management practices, thereby promoting responsible and enduring development.
Laure Wessemius-Chibrac, Chairwoman of the REGMIFA Board stated: “Our long-standing alliance with FMO embodies our commitment to nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit in Africa. This substantial investment is more than financial support, it’s a catalyst for innovation and resilience, enabling micro and small enterprises to flourish and positively impact countless lives.”
Juan Jose Dada Ortiz, Director Financial Institutions at FMO, added: “By renewing our commitment to REGMIFA through our long-term partner Symbiotics, we are able to reach smaller financial institutions and end-beneficiaries in LDCs and frontier markets outside of our portfolio, allowing us to maximize our impact. Our investment in the Fund is 2X Challenge-aligned due to the strong female leadership on the REGMIFA Board, its focus on gender-lens investing and having over 30% of end-borrowers being female. Together with Symbiotics, we look forward to fostering economic development throughout the Sub-Saharan African region.”
For REGMIFA, this endorsement is a testament to the enduring partnership and arrives at a crucial moment for the Fund. It enables sustained support to our investees, helping them navigate liquidity and risk challenges in the region effectively.
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About Regmifa
Launched in 2010, the REGMIFA Fund is a blended finance initiative that attracts both public and private investors seeking impactful ventures with risk-adjusted returns. Since its inception, the Fund has generated USD 670 million in investments across Sub-Saharan Africa, impacting over 2 million micro-entrepreneurs. A parallel Technical Assistance Facility provides tailored technical and institutional support to REGMIFA’s partner institutions, enhancing their capacity and effectiveness. regmifa.com
About Symbiotics Asset Management
Symbiotics is the leading market access platform for impact investing, dedicated to private markets in emerging and frontier economies. The group offers investment, asset management and capacity building services. Symbiotics Asset Management has USD 2.8 billion in assets under management spread across 21 different funds and mandates. symbioticsgroup.com
About FMO
FMO is the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank. As a leading impact investor, FMO supports sustainable private sector growth in developing countries and emerging markets by investing in ambitious projects and entrepreneurs. FMO believes that a strong private sector leads to economic and social development and has a 50+ year proven track-record in empowering entrepreneurs to make local economies more inclusive, productive, resilient and sustainable. FMO focuses on three sectors that have high development impact: Agribusiness, Food & Water, Energy, and Financial Institutions. With a total committed portfolio of EUR ~13 billion spanning over 85 countries, FMO is one of the larger bilateral private sector development banks globally. fmo.nl
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For more information contact:
Roberta Maurutto, Corporate Communication Specialist, Symbiotics
roberta.maurutto@symbioticsgroup.com
Monica Beek, Stakeholder Engagement Advisor, FMO
M.Beek@fmo.nl
