Nigeria Content Online

Some finance
institutions have raised about 16 million Euros to invest in
high-potential emerging and early-stage microfinance institutions that
need financial and professional support to grow in Nigeria and Ghana.

The firms, Goodwell
West Africa, managed by Alitheia Capital (Nigeria), Goodwell
Investments (Netherlands), and JCS Investments (Ghana), announced on
Friday that it has received commitments from the German Bank for
Reconstruction and the Norwegian Microfinance Initiative Frontier Fund.

This brings the
total commitments so far to Euro 16 million, which the private equity
company will invest in high-potential microfinance institutions in
Ghana and Nigeria.

In December 2009,
the firms announced the first close of a $60 million equity fund,
focused on microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Nigeria and Ghana.

Investment in a variety of institutions

Goodwell
Investments provides investment advisory services towards the
development and management of investment vehicles and products that
generate both social and financial returns. Alitheia Capital (Nigeria)
and JCS Investments, investment advisors specialising in venture
capital management and advisory services for Foreign Direct
Investments, say the investment is for emerging and early stage
microfinance institutions.

A large share of
the population in the region is financially excluded or not served by
formal or high-quality financial service providers. The financial
infrastructure to reach these groups is lacking or inadequate in both
countries. The objective of Alitheia Goodwell is to build this
financial infrastructure by investing in a variety of microfinance
institutions (MFIs).

Through its local
manager, Alitheia Capital, the company will invest primarily in
established microfinance institutions with potential for high growth
and transformation. In later stages, it will also identify and invest
in high-potential emerging and early-stage institutions that need
financial and professional support to develop and grow rapidly.

Alitheia Goodwell’s
strategy is to provide a combination of growth capital, on the ground
support to local microfinance institutions management teams, and access
to the expertise and a global network of experienced microfinance
practitioners.

Karl-Heinz
Fleishhacker, head, Financial and Private Sector Sub-Saharan Africa of
KfW Development Bank, in a statement said the firm(Goodwell West
Africa) is “happy to conclude our first investment under the
Microfinance Initiative for Sub-Saharan Africa II, an initiative which
aims at strengthening Sub-Saharan microfinance networks.”

Richard Weingarten, managing director of NMI, also said he believes
both markets have significant potential. “We are also particularly
pleased to be able to support the local management teams in Ghana and
Nigeria and to thus help build local capacity for making microfinance
investments.”