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A growth accelerator for SMEs and industrial SMEs

Strengthening equity gives West African companies the financial solidity to take a decisive step, where debt alone quickly reaches its limits.

Our investment criteria

Minimum amount for a request, that is €2m or USD 2.13m
1.3bn FCFA
Our investment area
19 countries
Equity, quasi-equity, mezzanine debt
3 instruments
Offices in Lomé and Abidjan
Since 1995

For a growing company, capital is never an end in itself: it is a foothold.

By consolidating the balance sheet, a private equity investment opens access to new resources, gives the company standing with its banking partners and frees up a lasting capacity to act. This approach belongs to a long-term partnership, inherited from a continuous presence in the sub-region since 1995. Beyond the financial contribution, it combines high-level strategic support with access to a broad network of investors, institutions and economic partners.

These conditions are the ones the funding gateway checks automatically before any review.

Your situation settles the nature of the transaction

Cauris Management works on two kinds of transaction. The gateway asks you to name yours on the very first screen: here is how it tells them apart.

Stronger equity, bank financing multiplied

A consolidated financial base changes how banks look at a company. Every franc of equity provided opens access to additional financing, in the service of structuring projects.

  • Development

    Production units, logistics capacity or new points of sale.

  • Strategic acquisitions

    Measured external growth to consolidate a market position.

  • Regional expansion

    New markets, segments or countries in French-speaking West Africa.

  • Modernisation

    Tools, processes and product ranges, to gain lasting competitiveness.

Strategic support and a network that opens doors

A financial contribution only takes on its full value when it comes with operational expertise. The partnership brings high-level support alongside the executives: financial structuring, governance, performance management and preparation of the next growth stages.

The company we invest in also gains access to a wide network of partners: institutional investors, development banks, family offices, industrial players and specialist advisers, relays that are often out of reach for a company on its own.

From family business to market leader

A proven path, resting on three inseparable pillars.

  1. Strengthened equity

    The financial solidity to invest without straining cash flow.

  2. Structured governance

    Professionalised decisions, with respect for the executives’ independence.

  3. A long-term view

    A lasting path, shared between executives and investors.

Varied profiles, one same ambition of sustainable growth

  • Executives of West African SMEs and industrial SMEs looking to change scale.

  • Family groups preparing an ownership transfer, a structuring phase or an opening of their capital.

  • Institutional investors and family offices seeking opportunities in French-speaking West Africa.

  • Growing companies seeking financing suited to their projects.

  • Entrepreneurs looking for a partner committed over time.

  • Strategic shareholders aiming at long-term value creation.

The companies in our portfolio

See the whole portfolio

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What the gateway checks automatically

These conditions are checked before any human review. Knowing them saves filling in five screens for nothing.

  • Amount1.3bn FCFA

    The floor for a request. Anything below is set aside before any review. Equivalents: €2m, USD 2.13m, XAF 1.3bn.

  • Area19 countries

    The eight states of the WAEMU area, West Africa and Central Africa. A head office outside that list is set aside.

  • Nature2 transactions

    Growth capital, venture capital. You name yours.

  • Instrument3 forms

    Equity, quasi-equity, mezzanine debt.

Do you have a growth project?

Let us talk about how an equity partnership can accelerate your company’s development and strengthen its financial solidity.

Present your project

Before you start

Two conditions open a review, and we check them straight away. If they are met, the questionnaire takes about ten minutes: you can stop and resume, your draft stays on this device, and nothing is sent before the summary.

Two conditions open a review

  1. West and Central Africafor the country of the head office; Nigeria remains outside our scope
  2. 1.3 billion FCFAat the very least, around 2 million euros or 2.13 million dollars

Both are cumulative: both must be met to continue.

What is worth having to hand

  • The figures from your last closed financial year: revenue, net profit, equity
  • The amount you are seeking and what the funds are for
  • Your business plan, if you already have one: it is optional at this stage

Let us check them now

XOF

The review threshold is 1.3 billion FCFA, around 2 million euros or 2.13 million dollars.

Step 1 of 5

Your company

Identifying the company and the stage it has reached.

Headcount *
What you are looking to do *
Optional, but it saves us one exchange.

Step 2 of 5

Your figures

Rough figures from the last closed financial year.

Currency of your accounts *
XOF
XOFIf negative, put a minus sign before the amount.
XOFShare capital, reserves and retained earnings.
XOFOptional. Bank loans outstanding.
Operating profit (EBITDA) *

Before interest, tax and depreciation.

Step 3 of 5

Your need

The instrument and the use of the funds.

Instrument you are seeking *
Use of the funds *

You may tick several.

Are you comfortable with Cauris taking a minority stake? *

Our stakes are usually minority ones, over a three to five year horizon.

When you need the funds *

Step 4 of 5

Your project

What the funding is meant to achieve.

  • The project: what you want to do, and why now.
  • The market: the demand you serve and your edge over competitors.
  • The company in three to five years: the revenue, headcount and locations you are aiming for.
0 of 1,500 characters, 120 at the very least.
Business plan A methodical document of 15 to 20 pages: the company, its environment, a 3 to 5 year projection, forecast financial statements.
Documents you can provide

They will be asked for if your case goes to review.

Step 5 of 5

Contacting you

So that our team can get back to you.

Preferred office

Last step

Summary of your request

Read your answers again before sending. Every block can be edited in one click.

Request sent

Thank you, your project is in our hands

Your case reference: . Keep it for our exchanges.

  1. Your request goes to the investment teamAn acknowledgement is sent to .
  2. An investment officer studies your caseAgainst our criteria: the company’s profile, its executives and governance, its market, and the shape of the stake.
  3. They get back to you for a first conversationHave your business plan and documents ready: they will be asked for if the case goes to review.

The companies we back