A consortium of investors made up of Amethis, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and SPE AIF I, LP (SPE Capital) has acquired a majority stake in GlobalCorp for Financial Services S.A.E (GlobalCorp), a leading non-banking financial services company in Egypt.
Established in 2015, GlobalCorp is a leading Egyptian non-bank lender with a current focus on leasing and factoring solutions for corporates and small and medium- sized enterprises (SMEs). The company’s leased assets include production lines, equipment and machinery, vehicles, and commercial/industrial real-estate while the factoring product portfolio covers a range of short-term financing solutions. Since its inception, GlobalCorp has extended EGP 13 billion (USD 715 million) in credit over more than 800 leasing and factoring contracts spanning more than 30 industries, with more than 25% of its portfolio serving SMEs and green financing. The company also arranged Egypt’s first and largest factoring syndication and completed its first securitization at the end of 2021.
The investment consortium will be investing in GlobalCorp alongside Founder Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Hatem Samir in partnership with its highly capable management team. The investment in GlobalCorp will include a primary capital investment to scale up the company’s portfolio and expand into new business segments. The consortium will also partner with GlobalCorp’s management on scaling up the company’s infrastructure and operations, investing in technology and advancing the company’s impact agenda, including the promotion of greater financial inclusion, financing to SME clients and green initiatives as well as promoting leading environmental, social and governance (ESG) and client protection standards within the non-banking financial services industry.
Hatem Samir, Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of GlobalCorp, said: “We are very happy to welcome our new partners to GlobalCorp. The backing of leading international financial institutions is a testimony to GlobalCorp’s success and unique profile in the market. We have ambitious plans for the company and look forward to combining our strengths to create value for all our stakeholders.”
Adnane Zerhouni, Investment Director at Amethis, said: “We are very pleased to partner with Hatem Samir and his team and we are looking forward to help grow the company, thus contributing to financial inclusion in Egypt. This is the first investment of Amethis in Egypt, which is now a core market for our funds.”
Heike Harmgart, EBRD Managing Director for the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean region, said: “We are very happy to join this consortium for the Bank’s first equity investment in a financial institution in Egypt and its first partnership in Egypt’s leasing and factoring sector. This investment will support a leading financial company in providing financing to an important segment of the Egyptian economy, covering small and medium-sized businesses.”
Ahmed Eloraby, Partner and Mehdi Charfi, Managing Partner at SPE Capital, said: “This will be our second investment in Egypt through the SPE AIF I fund and a reflection of the deepening of SPE Capital’s on-the-ground presence as a team. We are excited to partner with Hatem and GlobalCorp’s management team on scaling the company’s organization, product offerings and market positioning and look forward to unlocking long-lasting value and impact to the company’s stakeholders.”
The consortium deal teams included Adnane Zerhouni, Aurélie Pujo, Badr Chkiriba, Omar Naciri and Khalil Benjelloun Touimi representing Amethis, Oumnia Benaddi, Sweta Penemetsa, Hassan Massoud, Martin Levesques and Dominique Naggar representing EBRD and Mehdi Charfi, Ahmed Eloraby, Sami Ergin and Omar Elhariry representing SPE Capital. The consortium was advised by Helmy, Hamza and Partners – a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International (legal advisor), PricewaterhouseCoopers (financial advisor), IBIS Consulting (ESG and Impact), and various other consultants on commercial and technical matters. The sellers were advised by Kamco Investment Company (Kamco Invest) (exclusive sell side financial advisor) and Matouk Bassiouny Business Law Office (legal advisor).
