Earlier this month the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. Government’s development finance institution, announced support for eight new development projects totaling nearly $1.2 billion in OPIC financing.
Ukraine is among the countries concerned by these private sector-led development projects, along with Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and South America, in a variety of sectors.
Thus OPIC plans to provide up to $37.5 million in financing to Emerging Europe Growth Fund (EEGF) III L.P. This private equity fund has been launched by Horizon Capital, a fund manager that originates and manages investments in mid-cap companies with offices in Kyiv (Kiev), Ukraine, and Chicago.
The EEGF III fund is expected to invest two-thirds of its portfolio in export-oriented companies in the information technology, food and light manufacturing sectors in Ukraine and Moldova, OPIC Press Secretary Sandra Niedzwiecki specified in an exchange with Ukraine Digital News.
The remaining part of its portfolio will focus on e-commerce, pharmaceutical, healthcare, consumer goods, and financial services companies that seek to capitalize on the anticipated rebound of the Ukrainian economy, she added.
In addition, OPIC will inject up to $25 million in Dragon Capital New Ukraine Fund L.P., a private equity fund managed by a subsidiary of Dragon Capital. This fund will target companies that are focused on product expansion, modernization, and market consolidation in the fields of agribusiness, infrastructure, logistics, retail, consumer goods, and real estate.
“DCNUF is a generalist fund, but Ukraine’s IT and other tech sectors are among the fund’s priority sectors of interest,” Andriy Nosok, Managing Director Private Equity at Dragon Capital, told Ukraine Digital News.
Ukraine “key priority” for the US
Asked about the reasons behind OPIC’s interest in Ukraine, Niedzwiecki said: “Ukraine is a key national security and foreign policy priority for the United States. OPIC is working with the U.S. private sector to invest in Ukraine in order to help stabilize and grow the country’s economy.”
OPIC’s current investment portfolio in Ukraine is $248 million and it is actively seeking new projects across different sectors which meet its policy and underwriting requirements, she added.
Established in 1971 as the U.S. Government’s development finance institution, OPIC mobilizes private capital to help address critical development challenges and in doing so, advances U.S. foreign policy and national security priorities. OPIC services are available for new and expanding business enterprises in more than 160 countries worldwide.
