SF partner GroFin in the SME sector recently released its 2019 Annual Report.

In 2019, GroFin invested in 25 new businesses by deploying US$21m of growth capital to increase the number of jobs they have helped to sustain since inception to 89,450 and the Report provides an overview of the following:

• How GroFin uses different forms of capital to generate value for its stakeholders.
• GroFin’s initial client interventions in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
• The financial performance and impact generated by the seven active funds.
• The impact GroFin’s finance and business support has on its clients’ businesses and how these businesses impact communities through job creation.

Although the Report covers last year’s operations, it recognises its publication sees economies around the world under increasing stress due to the global health crisis created by Covid-19.

The developing countries where GroFin operates will not escape the severe economic impact of the virus and SMEs will be hit especially hard.

GroFin’s focus is on supporting its SME portfolio businesses through the crisis to ensure the preservation of thousands of jobs and livelihoods and GroFin believe they have the resources and know-how to do this.  They also believe that this crisis reaffirms the value of their hands-on ability to assess the feasibility and manage risk at the SME client level, and to do so at scale.

New business opportunities, as well as new ways of doing business, will emerge from all of this and GroFin look forward to supporting the many creative entrepreneurs that again will help rebuild their economies.