Private equity impact investment firm RENEW has announced its expansion into Uganda, the company’s second African market after Ethiopia.
RENEW is an impact investment firm that has designed a financing model to address the missing middle that exists in capital markets across many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The company does this by investing capital alongside the Impact Angel Network (IAN), a global network of impact investors established by RENEW in 2012 which has grown to become the largest angel network in North America dedicated to investing in SMEs in Africa.
RENEW’s local entity, RENEW Investments Uganda, is officially registered with the Uganda Registration Services Bureau and has hired its first employee. The company said several factors made the country an attractive destination for RENEW and the IAN, including a growing population, rising middle class and a government oriented towards private sector growth.
“Uganda has performed very well over the past 10 years. The country also has a special place in RENEW’s history, as it was the first country I visited on the continent and learned about the immense opportunity in Sub-Saharan Africa’s private sector. We are excited that RENEW and the IAN are expanding from Ethiopia, where we have become the most active investment firm, into Uganda; a country rich with culture and opportunity,” RENEW’s chief executive officer (CEO) Matthew Davis said.
RENEW has had a presence in Ethiopia since 2012 and, with the IAN, has become one of the most active private equity investors in the country.
