YEELEN FINANCIAL FUND RAISES EUR 30 MILLION
Yeelen Capital, initiated by Cauris Management, secured subscriptions of more than EUR 30 million for Yeelen Financial Fund L.P., its private equity fund dedicated to the financial sector, at an initial closing.
Yeelen Financial Fund L.P.
Yeelen Financial Fund L.P. (the Fund, or Yeelen Financial Fund), launched at the initiative of the West African Development Bank (BOAD), aims to support the growth and development of banks, insurance companies, microfinance institutions, financial technology companies (« fintechs ») and other financial institutions of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU). The fund will invest between EUR 2 and 15 million in equity and quasi-equity per company. Its target size is EUR 150 million (FCFA 100 billion) by the end of 2018, with a first closing at EUR 75 million (FCFA 50 billion) at the end of 2017. With this initial closing, the fund expects to start its investment activity immediately.
The current subscriptions, totalling more than EUR 30 million, were secured exclusively from a wide range of African regional institutions, including long-standing investors such as the BOAD, the Atlantique Group and SGI Togo, and new investors such as the Caisse Nationale de Prévoyance Sociale de Côte d’Ivoire, as well as insurance companies and family offices such as SONAVIE Mali and the Sanchez family in Senegal.
Cauris Management has made available to Yeelen Capital a dedicated team led by Benjamin Kouakou, who has more than 25 years of experience in the African financial sector, in particular at Citibank (Regional Director of Corporate Finance for West and Central Africa), Orabank Tchad (Chief Executive Officer) and Diamond Bank (Regional Director for French-speaking Africa). Cauris Management will also provide Yeelen Capital with assistance on ESG, reporting and back-office services.
Mr Christian ADOVELANDE, President of the BOAD, explained that setting up this fund « will answer the needs for modernisation and restructuring of the WAEMU financial sector, which faces the challenges of growing demand for specialised financial services and of improving the competitiveness of banking and financial players while meeting regulatory constraints ».
According to Paul Derreumaux, Chairman of the Board of Yeelen Capital: « The WAEMU area needs substantial capital to meet the demands of its economic growth and the rapid regulatory change in banking and insurance. This creates attractive opportunities for funds such as Yeelen, which combines the experience of a solid team with strong local roots ».
Noël Yawo Eklo, Chief Executive Officer of Cauris Management, said: « Developing a sector fund such as Yeelen is a natural step for Cauris Management, building on its experience as a generalist fund manager, its expertise and its track record in supporting and financing SMEs and financial businesses in French-speaking West Africa ».
About Yeelen Capital and Cauris Management
Yeelen Capital is a consortium made up of Cauris Management, Paul Derreumaux (founder of the Bank Of Africa Group), Amadou Raimi (previously Chairman of Deloitte France and Vice-Chairman of Deloitte Worldwide) and Finactu (a consultancy specialising in insurance in Africa). Majority-owned by Cauris Management, this consortium won the international tender launched by the BOAD to raise and manage a fund dedicated to the financial sector in the WAEMU region.
Cauris Management is the first private equity fund management company in French-speaking West Africa. Founded in 1995 and active in the SME segment, the Cauris Management team has made 47 investments and 40 exits, including 11 investments in the financial sector with a return of more than 3 times the funds invested in banking. The Cauris Management portfolio also includes holdings in sectors as varied as agribusiness, hospitality, telecoms, information technology, retail and energy. Cauris Management operates from two offices, Lomé and Abidjan.
Is your company pursuing a growth project?
Tell us about it in five minutes.