IFC, Proparco and Helios to invest in African sports and entertainment
The partnership would focus on exploring joint investment opportunities.
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The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has announced plans to partner with the French development finance institution Proparco and Helios Sports and Entertainment Group to drive the expansion of sports and entertainment in Africa.
The partnership would focus on exploring joint investment opportunities that can help grow economies and support jobs in the region through sectors that have the potential to bring dynamism, youth employment, value-added exports, and that also can strengthen ancillary sectors such as tourism, real estate, creative economies, and media.
A partnership with Helios Sports and Entertainment would offer an opportunity for IFC and Proparco to jointly address a long history of limited financing in Africa's creative sectors, including sports and entertainment, and catalyse private sector development in the region.
"The African sports and entertainment are promising routes to accelerate growth and scale innovation on the continent. Africa is a key market in IFC's creative industries strategy, targeting many verticals, such as e-commerce, arts and craft, fashion, audiovisual content, technology, and now sports and entertainment. Joining forces with partners like Proparco and Helios will lead to scalable opportunities to transform the creative economy in Africa, encourage local talent and drive homegrown development," said Makhtar Diop, managing director, IFC.
"Helios has for over two decades exclusively focused on harnessing the wealth of investment opportunities in Africa, generating both competitive returns and real socio-economic impact. The creation of the Helios Sports and Entertainment Group is a demonstration of our unwavering passion for Africa and its people and the continuation of the Helios investment strategy, creating unique investment opportunities in sports and entertainment across a broad spectrum from seeding start-ups to providing companies with growth capital and expertise, building profitable and responsible private enterprises. We are excited to partner with IFC and Proparco on our journey to develop and build the sports and entertainment ecosystem in Africa," said Tope Lawani, co-founder and managing partner, Helios Investment Partners.
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