Back to the complete issue
Tuesday, 1 February 2022

Ezdehar reaches USD 168 mn first close of EMF II fund

Ezdehar reaches USD 168 mn first close of EMF II fund: Private equity firm Ezdehar Management has reached the first close of its Mid-Cap Fund II (EMF II), overshooting its USD 100-120 mn target to book commitments totalling USD 168 mn, the firm announced in a statement (pdf) yesterday evening. The close means that Ezdehar now has more than USD 250 mn in assets under management between its two funds, making it one of the largest Egypt-focused fund managers.

About the fund: Ezdehar plans to deploy the capital by purchasing majority and minority stakes in 6-8 small to mid-cap companies with an individual ticket size of USD 5-30 mn. It will target companies in growth sectors such as consumer and retail, business services, education, healthcare, and manufacturing. Pharma and F&B firms are also on the list, Ezdehar founder and Managing Director Emad Barsoum previously told us.

The IFC is the latest LP to announce a commitment, saying that it had invested USD 20 mn in the fund.

It joins a number of other development finance institutions: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has contributed USD 25 mn, the UK’s CDC is in with USD 25 mn, the European Investment Bank has provided USD 15 mn, and Dutch development bank FMO has provided USD 20 mn. The Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO) and the Egyptian-American Enterprise Fund have also made undisclosed commitments to the fund, Ezdehar said.

What they said: “With this fund, Ezdehar was able to significantly expand its investor base to include a unique set of reputable regional and global institutions,” said Emad Barsoum, Ezdehar's founder and managing director.

What’s next: Ezdehar expects to reach a final close of USD 180 mn by the end of 2022, it said in the statement.

Enterprise is a daily publication of Enterprise Ventures LLC, an Egyptian limited liability company (commercial register 83594), and a subsidiary of Inktank Communications. Summaries are intended for guidance only and are provided on an as-is basis; kindly refer to the source article in its original language prior to undertaking any action. Neither Enterprise Ventures nor its staff assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, whether in the form of summaries or analysis. © 2022 Enterprise Ventures LLC.

Enterprise is available without charge thanks to the generous support of HSBC Egypt (tax ID: 204-901-715), the leading corporate and retail lender in Egypt; EFG Hermes (tax ID: 200-178-385), the leading financial services corporation in frontier emerging markets; SODIC (tax ID: 212-168-002), a leading Egyptian real estate developer; SomaBay (tax ID: 204-903-300), our Red Sea holiday partner; Infinity (tax ID: 474-939-359), the ultimate way to power cities, industries, and homes directly from nature right here in Egypt; CIRA (tax ID: 200-069-608), the leading providers of K-12 and higher level education in Egypt; Orascom Construction (tax ID: 229-988-806), the leading construction and engineering company building infrastructure in Egypt and abroad; Moharram & Partners (tax ID: 616-112-459), the leading public policy and government affairs partner; Palm Hills Developments (tax ID: 432-737-014), a leading developer of commercial and residential properties; Mashreq (tax ID: 204-898-862), the MENA region’s leading homegrown personal and digital bank; Industrial Development Group (IDG) (tax ID:266-965-253), the leading builder of industrial parks in Egypt; Hassan Allam Properties (tax ID:  553-096-567), one of Egypt’s most prominent and leading builders; and Saleh, Barsoum & Abdel Aziz (tax ID: 220-002-827), the leading audit, tax and accounting firm in Egypt.