Crown Agents Limited (“Crown Agents”) today announced it has agreed terms relating to the sale of 100% of its financial services businesses, Crown Agents Bank Limited (“CAB”) and Crown Agents Investment Management Limited (“CAIM”), to funds advised by Helios Investment Partners (“Helios”).

CAB and CAIM are specialist providers of payment, cash management, trade, treasury and investment services. They are experts in working with emerging and fragile markets, and offer tailored, practical and effective solutions built on deep local knowledge and experience of complex environments. Among their clients are governments, development organisations, donors, central banks, pension and investment fund managers and corporates with international transactional needs. They provide services in Africa, the Caribbean and South East Asia.

Crown Agents CEO, David Richardson, commented, “In Helios we have found a buyer for our financial services businesses with an ethos and values similar to our own. Helios’ deep knowledge and experience of African markets and the financial services sector will further strengthen CAB and CAIM’s long standing role as the partner of choice in addressing the issue of financial exclusion in frontier markets. Helios’ vision for the future of the financial services operations and its professional ethos align with those of Crown Agents, ensuring that they will remain long-term strategic partners.

We look forward to continuing our working relationship with the CAB and CAIM.” Tope Lawani, co-founder and Managing Partner of Helios Investment Partners, added, “Crown Agents’ financial services team is renowned for providing specialist financial solutions in emerging markets, principally Africa and the Caribbean. Helios is delighted to be partnering with the experienced management team, and we look forward to bringing our African knowledge and financial services expertise to bear in realising the significant growth potential of these businesses.

We believe these are unique assets with a hard-to-replicate platform and a strong brand. Underserved markets in Africa, the Caribbean and South East Asia will benefit from a renewed commitment by Crown Agents to be a trusted provider of financial solutions.”

Crown Agents was advised by Deloitte’s Financial Institutions Group led by Anurag Verma and Richard Monahan.

-Ends-

 

For further information please contact:

Helios:
Fergus Wheeler
Fergus.wheeler@fticonsulting.com
+44 (0)20 3727 1522

Or

Emily Desmier
emily.desmier@fticonsulting.com
+44 (0) 20 3727 1233

Crown Agents:

Daniela Brakewell
Head of Communications
Crown Agents Ltd
St Nicholas House, St Nicholas Way,
Sutton, Surrey SM1 1EL
+44 (0)20 8710 6303
daniela.brakewell@crownagents.co.uk

Notes to Editors

About Crown Agents Bank and Crown Agents Investment Management (CAIM) 
Crown Agents Bank and CAIM are specialist providers of payment, cash management, trade, treasury and investment services, focused on the needs of governments, development organisations, financial institutions and corporates. Experts in working with emerging and fragile markets, they offer tailored, practical and effective solutions built on deep local knowledge and experience of complex
environments. Among their clients are governments, development organisations, donors, central banks, pension and investment fund managers and corporates with international transactional needs.

About Crown Agents Limited
Crown Agents is an international development company that partners with governments, aid organisations and the private sector in almost 100 countries around the world. Through consultancy, and supply chain management services, they help countries grow their economies, strengthen their health systems and improve financial management. Taking on clients’ fundamental challenges, they make lasting change to the systems and organisations that are vital for people’s well-being and prosperity. We have people and offices in Africa, Asia and South America as well as the UK, US and Japan.

About Helios Investment Partners
Helios Investment Partners is an Africa-focused private investment firm. Helios operates a family of funds and their related co-investment entities, aggregating more than $3 billion in capital commitments, pursuing a full range of investment types, including business formations, growth equity investments, structured investments in listed entities and large scale leveraged acquisitions across Africa. Established in 2004 and led by co-founding partners Tope Lawani and Babatunde Soyoye, Helios is one of the largest investment firms focusing on Africa and is among the few independent pan-African private equity investment firms to be founded and managed by Africans.