The 21st Century Latin America
Fund is structured as a private equity fund focused on Latin America for
a targeted amount of US$100 million. It is
a sectoral fund with the objective of achieving significant capital gains
by investing in the fastest growing sectors in the region.
The ag sector in Latin America
offers impressive growth opportunities. Throughout all of Latin America,
the food, agribusiness and ag biotech industry is one of the top three
industry sectors in each country’s economy. Moreover, this sector
is income-sensitive when it comes to domestic sales. This means that
the current GDP projections for Latin American countries favor the ag sector
moreso than most other sectors.
GIC devoted over six months
to meeting with the senior management of blue chip ag companies in Latin
America. It then reviewed financial information provided by these
companies. Upon completion of this review, GIC selected a number
of companies for a prototype portfolio. The criteria for selection
included an assessment of future value, which the company could provide
as a result of:
We
are committed to an active investment strategy, offering investors an expected
average annual return on investments of 30%. Target companies in
the prototype portfolio satisfy the following key criteria that, in our
estimation, will insure a high return to investors:
| Target Subsectors | Selected Company Investment Criteria |
|
sourcing, agricultural technologies and services, and product development opportunities in Latin America -Agribusiness-based financial institutions -Institutional investors with agribusiness portfolios -Private investors with interest and experience in agribusiness sector |
GIC, in partnership with the Latin American Enterprise Fund (LAEF), brings long-standing technical expertise and investment transaction experience in Latin America. LAEF will be serving as Fund administrator and strategic advisor; GIC will be the General Manager of the Fund. To find out more about the general partners and staffs of GIC and LAEF and other services see http://www.gicgroup.com/english/
Our proposed portfolio offers an investment strategy for key growth sectors of the region. The portfolio includes platform companies, which are industry leaders in agribusiness, as well as small to medium size companies that offer significant market potential because of their new technologies and products. For more information about our portfolio please contact Rick Gilmore at rickgilmore@gicgroup.com or Daniel Secondi at dsecondi@gicgroup.com.
GIC Group identifies investment
opportunities and develops deal flow through a foundation of locally based
organizations. GIC and LAEF serve as the umbrella organization for
coordination of all information collection and dissemination and central
clearinghouse for due diligence and follow-on services. Our Fund
associates include local portfolio management companies and financial institutions
with agribusiness clients. Other cooperators include private and
parastatal research organizations specializing in agribusiness.
| The Investment Opportunity |
Agribusiness in Latin America has traditionally been a very important activity. Latin America represents the highest current and projected financial flows among emerging market economies. The region also ranked first in direct equity investment in 2000, according to reports from the Institute of International Finance. The GIC Group expects this trend to continue.
Because of recent liberalization and opening of Latin American economies, the region is undergoing a major change both in technology and distribution. Agribusiness in the region is well positioned to take advantage of the structural changes. These factors, combined with the traditional difficulties of obtaining capital in Latin America, offer a special opportunity for investors in this sector.
We are currently involving additional strategic investors interested in our Fund. To date, we have achieved a considerable level of capital commitment, involving several strategic investors and a major international financial institution. At this time, we are in the road show presentation phase for interested strategic investors. For more information about the 21st Century Latin American Fund, a profile on management, the structure of the Fund, and investment and exit opportunities, contact Dr. Richard Gilmore at rickgilmore@gicgroup.com
Last Updated on September 25, 2002