Bpifrance and Proparco have announced a €75m interim closing of the Averroès Finance III fund with the addition of two new investors, Fransabank and Bank Audi.

Fransabank, which invested €10m in the Fund, is a Lebanese commercial bank established in 1921, whose aim is to undertake all forms of banking, financing and credit operations both in Lebanon and abroad. 

In Africa, the banking group has presence in Algeria, Sudan and in Ivory Coast.

Bank Audi, which contributed €5m, maintains a global presence via operations in 13 countries.

The Bank offers clients a full range of products and services covering all aspects of Corporate and Commercial Banking, retail banking, and private banking, as well as capital markets and factoring operations. 

The Bank operates mainly in Lebanon, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and Turkey.

Isabelle Bébéar, Head of International Affairs at Bpifrance, said: "The entry of these two new partners and investors, Fransabank and Bank Audi, confirms the confidence of major international institutions have in the management team.” “Furthermore, our experience and unique networks will allow us to develop strong synergies between Averroès Finance III’s limited partners and the portfolio of African companies,” she said.

Averroès Finance III is the third generation of funds being managed by Bpifrance and co-sponsored with Proparco. 

Having initially been the first fund of funds dedicated to the Maghreb region, before expanding to cover all of North Africa, the Averroès Finance scheme is now being extended across the entire African continent.

In addition to seeking for financial performance and building a diversified portfolio, Averroès Finance III aims to produce a significant impact at a local level by selecting amongst the most performing funds and drawing upon the expertise and networks of its two sponsors, Bpifrance and Proparco. 

This scheme also provides access to a network of locally-based managers, and to a portfolio of over a hundred performing companies.

Averroès Finance III will be investing in around 10 generalist funds on the African continent, targeting high-growth SMEs or midcaps.

The fund has already made three investments in the Africinvest III fund, Metier Capital Growth International Fund II and Adenia Capital IV.