How we invest

CDC is a fund of funds, investing capital with fund managers with expertise in local markets.

We do not make direct investments.

We have instead chosen an intermediated approach, which we believe enables us to encourage other investors to bring their money, increasing the volume of investment to markets where there is a shortage of risk capital, thereby increasing our overall development impact.

At the end of June 2009, CDC had £1.1bn invested in 728 portfolio companies in 74 developing countries through 65 fund managers.

Click here to see the list of fund managers we invest with.

Since 2005, CDC has committed almost £2.7bn to 59 fund managers. Alongside CDC’s commitments, other investors have committed US$17.7bn to these fund managers. More than 90% of the capital invested with CDC is from private sources.

In many cases, CDC has played an important role in attracting new investors by working actively with the fund managers to help them raise capital. In doing so CDC plays an important part in the development of a private sector investment infrastructure in many developing countries.

CDC’s success depends to a large extent on the selection of strong fund managers. CDC looks for experience and a compelling investment strategy:

• In line with CDC’s focus on poorer countries; and
• A record of successful investments in commercially-viable and promising businesses.

CDC is committed to responsible investment principles and requires its fund managers to sign up to and comply with CDC’s Investment Code on environmental, social and governance matters.