Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company Limited (InfraCredit) has successfully closed a $25 million equity investment from Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), an infrastructure development finance institution in Africa.
In this primary transaction, AFC has become a shareholder in InfraCredit alongside the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).
On account of this investment, Sanjeev Gupta, executive director, financial services of AFC, and Banji Fehintola, Treasurer and Senior Director of AFC, will join InfraCredit’s Board of Directors.
InfraCredit is a specialised infrastructure credit enhancement facility established in 2017 by the NSIA in collaboration with GuarantCo (a member of the Private Infrastructure Development Group) to provide guarantees that enhance the credit quality of local-currency debt instruments issued to finance eligible infrastructure projects in Nigeria.
The company maintains ‘AAA’ long-term national scale credit rating from Agusto & Co and GCR.
Managing director/CEO of InfraCredit, Chinua Azubike, commented: “Our partnership with AFC as an equity investor will help accelerate our transformation while better positioning us to execute on our strategy and mission to unlock long-term local currency financing for infrastructure. We are delighted to have investors who share our values and vision for success.”
President/CEO of AFC, Samaila Zubairu, also comments: “We are very pleased to work alongside InfraCredit and support its goal of bringing more bankable infrastructure projects in Nigeria on line. AFC has always been committed to supporting the continent to reach its economic potential through strategic investments in infrastructure. To maximise our impact, it is important to partner with highly esteemed and reputable organisations such as InfraCredit.
“Nigeria is Africa’s largest economy and the 30th-largest in the world. However it has far more potential that could be unlocked if its infrastructure challenges were to be overcome. We believe such investments would allow Nigeria to diversify its economy and reduce its dependency on the oil industry. As an institution, AFC is looking to build a coalition of investors, both globally and domestically, to accelerate the pace at which the infrastructure gap is closed, and we are delighted to now count such an esteemed organisation as part of this coalition.”
Speaking on the successful completion of the equity raise, the Chairman, InfraCredit and
MD/CEO, NSIA, Uche Orji said, “We are pleased to welcome AFC as a partner and stakeholder of InfraCredit, and we are extremely pleased that a respected, long-term-oriented partner like AFC shares our views about the vast opportunities ahead for InfraCredit.”
