Who we are: History
CDC has been an innovative investor in emerging markets for nearly 60 years.
Established in 1948, our initial mandate was to strengthen the economies of the former UK colonies by providing finance for businesses.
In time, as countries gained independence, CDC became the Commonwealth Development Corporation and by 1970 was given authority to invest in poor countries beyond the Commonwealth where there was a need for CDC's expertise and capital.
In 1997, CDC began to focus exclusively on equity investments.
In recent years two world class fund managers have been spun out of CDC: in 2001, Aureos which focuses on small and medium enterprises; in 2004, Actis a leading private equity manager in emerging markets.
CDC has retained its balance sheet and now operates as a fund of funds working with over 20 fund managers.
| Year | |
|---|---|
1948 |
CDC set up to develop resources of Britain’s colonies. |
1949 |
CDC acquires Borneo Abaca Ltd (BAL) in Malaysia, which eventually becomes a major producer of palm oil. It also makes its first industrial investment, the construction of a cement plant at Chilanga, outside Lusaka in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia). |
1955 |
CDC generates profit for the first time. CDC has been profitable in all but three years since. |
1963 |
The organisation is renamed the Commonwealth Development Corporation. Chilanga Cement is nationalised by the Zambian Government. |
1969 |
CDC is given authority to invest outside the Commonwealth. |
1992 |
Establishment of Ghana Venture Capital Fund, the first CDC-sponsored private equity fund to attract third party investors. |
1994 |
The Zambian Government re-privatises Chilanga Cement and CDC purchases a majority stake, the first step in a regional consolidation strategy, leading to the formation of Pan African Cement. |
1996 |
BAL is sold to a Malaysian company. The annualized internal rate of return on CDC’s investments is 13% over 47 years. |
1997 |
The Prime Minister, Tony Blair, announces that CDC is to become a Public Private Partnership (PPP). |
1999 |
CDC transforms from a statutory corporation to a plc, and is renamed CDC Group plc. |
2001 |
CDC sells Pan African Cement, the holding company which includes Chilanga Cement, to an international cement company. Aureos spun out as an independent fund manager focusing on small and medium enterprises. |
2004 |
Actis is spun out as an independent and privately controlled fund manager in the emerging markets. CDC begins operating as a fund of funds. |
2006 |
CDC invested with over 20 fund managers. |