Lendable Inc., a leading emerging market fintech credit provider, is targeting a US$100mn closed-ended fund focused on emerging and frontier market fintech investments
The Lendable MSME Fintech Credit Fund is designed to unlock access to financial services for over 150,000 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), providing investors with high impact exposure to important markets and the potential of high uncorrelated returns. It has already received the backing of FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank.
This Fund provides credit to African and Asian fintech companies, who in turn offer fair credit facilities to MSMEs. The same MSMEs are the engines of wealth creation, financial inclusion and economic growth in these regions, yet historically have had limited access to fair credit and financial services.
Backed by leading blue-chip impact and development financial institution (DFI) investors, the Fund has recently soft closed a US$49mn investment from DFC, DFAT, Calvert, Ceniarth, BIO, FMO and FSD Africa (FSDAi). Another US$20mn is on track to close in the fourth quarter and the fund is expected to hard close above US$100mn in 2022.
The Lendable MSME Fintech Credit Fund is Lendable’s fourth fund and with the soft close takes the firm’s overall committed capital to over US$200mn. Since inception, the firm’s cumulative return has annualised a net return of 14.32%.
“We have had an amazing response to this Fund and have brought on board an impressive slate of leading impact investors and DFIs who back our approach,” commented Daniel Goldfarb, co-founder of Lendable. “Through our fintech investments, we are providing essential working capital for MSMEs that enables off-grid customers to buy energy products and opens the door to innovative digital banking services to consumers. It is about making a high impact difference.”
Marnix Monsfort, director financial institutions, FMO, added, “Emerging market fintech investment has a direct and highly important impact on regional development. Sadly, all too often, quality firms struggle to scale due to a lack of adequate, tailored capital. FMO is excited to partner with Lendable as its proposition directly addresses this issue by bringing new capital to the table combined with their strong record of delivering competitive risk-adjusted returns for investors.”
