A London-based management firm focused on alternative private equity and venture capital solutions has been selected by the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ)to establish and manage a new Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) Fund in Jamaica.
The company, Actus Partners, was chosen to be the sole manager after a recent ‘Call for Proposals’ from local and international private equity funds for fund manager(s) under the World Bank Access to Finance for Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Project (A2F) for which the DBJ is the implementing agency.
Actus Partners has established the Jamaica Actus Small and Medium Enterprises Fund I (JASMEF) which will provide growth and risk capital financing to invest in high-growth SMEs in Jamaica, in addition to other investments undertaken in the Caribbean.
JASMEF will receive an investment of US$5 million from the DBJ, through a financing facility provided via the World Bank Group’s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and will be required to raise additional funding of a minimum of US$10 million, to meet the DBJ’s objective of having a minimum level of funding dedicated to Jamaica-based SMEs.
According to its managing partners, JASMEF’s overall target is a fund size of up to US$100 million, investable in Jamaica and other eligible countries of the Caribbean region.
The fund is expected to begin operations in the third quarter of 2021 and will employ a variety of marketing tools to inform business projects and entrepreneurs of the availability of its financing.
DBJ’s managing director Milverton Reynolds pointed out that JASMEF is the sixth fund in which the DBJ has invested and represents the continued expansion of the local private capital ecosystem, the growth and development of which was established under the DBJ’s Jamaica Venture Capital Programme.
“I am very pleased, not only that we have been able to conclude these arrangements satisfactorily but also that the DBJ has demonstrated once again that we are dedicated to the development of the Jamaican entrepreneurial class that will grow our economy and improve our standard of living and quality of life,” he said.
The fund’s objectives are aligned with the long-term vision of the Jamaican Government and the World Bank to encourage private equity investors to address the financing gap that is a significant challenge to local SMEs by increasing the supply of available long-term equity financing.
JASMEF will invest in sectors that particularly promote strong economic growth and development which include key sectors such as technology; climate and renewable energy; agriculture and food security; health and hygiene; tourism; logistics; light manufacturing, FMCG and business services.
In addition to generating superior returns, the fund also has the key objective of achieving measurable impact targets that support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including an emphasis on decent work, economic growth and gender equity.
The fund will take a hands-on partnership approach with clients, which will entail the provision of technical assistance, where needed, to SMEs that have typically struggled in obtaining access to risk and growth capital.
Ugo Ikemba, JASMEF co-Managing Partner, said: “We are honoured and extremely keen to partner with the DBJ and our network of international and Caribbean institutions to invest growth capital in Jamaica and the pan-Caribbean region.”
“We strongly believe that we will get the best results by coupling our global and local expertise in private equity, impact investing and capacity-building gained from partnering with numerous SMEs, with our rigorous approach to analysis, transparency and teamwork.”
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