Finnfund supporting Finnish companies with financing and business opportunities in developing markets

Finnfund invests in businesses or projects in developing countries. While our investments can not target a company in Finland, we are interested in projects by Finnish companies as long as they meet our investment criteria.

Finnfund can support Finnish companies that are expanding or exporting their solutions to developing markets, either by financing projects or by connecting companies with concrete business opportunities.

In practice, cooperation takes place in two ways:

By financing companies operating in developing countries in which a Finnish company is either an owner or plays a key supplier role
By linking Finnish companies with Finnfund’s portfolio of over 200 investee companies to promote cooperation and business opportunities.

Our investments in Finnish companies

Finnfund can invest in Finnish-owned companies operating in developing markets or provide financing to the business customers of Finnish companies in those markets. In both cases, the investment sought from Finnfund should be at least 5 million euros, and the total project financing or financing round should typically be at least 10 million euros.

If your company is planning to invest in developing markets, or if your customer is developing a project that makes use of Finnish solutions, get in touch with Finnfund.

If your Finnish company is planning an investment to establish a new company or expand the operations of an existing company, and it meets our investment criteria, get in touch.

When a Finnish company is the investor or owner of a project

Finnfund can act as a financing partner in a Finnish company’s investment in a developing country, in practice by financing a Finnish-owned subsidiary or joint venture. The financing can be used, for example, to expand Finnish-owned operations or to establish new ones.

For instance, Finnfund has established a joint venture in Thailand together with Solar Finland, a company based in Salo. Salo Tech manufactures durable, high-quality solar panels, following the model of Solar Finland’s factory in Salo, Finland.

Finnfund started a joint venture in Thailand with Solar Finland, a company that has manufactured solar panels in Salo, Finland, for over 40 years.

When a Finnish company is a technology or a service provider

Finnfund is interested in projects where a Finnish company provides solutions to private sector needs and where financing can support the creation of partnerships. Export financing itself is handled by partners such as Finnvera, part of Team Finland, but Finnfund can enable projects to move forward through its investments. In practice, this means that Finnfund can, for example, provide loans for a manufacturing plant, a network company, or an energy facility being built in a developing country, to which a Finnish company is supplying products.

One of Finnfund’s investee companies is Fibertime Group, which operates in South Africa and provides fast, affordable fibre connectivity to residents of township areas. The solution is enabled by technology supplied by Nokia, such as active network components, which are used to build a WiFi network across the entire area.

The Finnish company Nokia is providing both fiber access nodes for the fiber exchange and fiber modems to create a WiFi network across the entire townships.

Who can Finnfund be a suitable financing partner for?

Finnfund may be a suitable financing partner if:

a Finnish company is investing in developing markets, or
a customer of a Finnish company operating in developing markets is seeking investment financing, and
the financing need exceeds EUR 5 million
the company is seeking market-based debt, equity or mezzanine financing, and the project has sustainable business potential.

Finnfund is not the right partner if:

the investment is intended for a public sector entity
the investment is sought for a company registered in Finland, or
the investment sought from Finnfund is less than EUR 5 million and/or the total financing requirement of the project is less than EUR 10 million.

Get in touch with Finnfund, when

you are planning to invest in or expanding into developing markets
your customer in developing markets needs financing for their investment.

We connect Finnish companies with our investees in developing markets

Finnfund’s portfolio includes more than 200 investee companies in developing countries across Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America, and we make over 20 new investments each year. Our investee companies often have technology, product or service needs for which Finnish companies can offer competitive solutions. Finnfund therefore frequently connects Finnish companies with those investee companies that are making investments in areas where Finnish firms have relevant expertise. In this way, we help open up market opportunities for Finnish companies that might otherwise remain undiscovered.

What kind of Finnish companies can Finnfund connect with its more than 200 investee companies around the world?

Finnfund may be a suitable partner if:

your company offers a product, technology or service suited to private sector needs and has the capacity to operate in developing markets (including installation and maintenance)
your company has references from operations outside its domestic market
your solution aligns with Finnfund’s main investment sectors, such as digital infrastructure and solutions, financial institutions, energy and infrastructure, forestry, and agriculture.

How we connect Finnish companies with our investee companies

We identify that one of our new or existing investee companies is looking for a technology or service that could potentially be sourced from Finland
Finnfund maps suitable Finnish providers (often with the support of the Team Finland network)
Where there is mutual interest, we introduce suitable Finnish companies to the decision-makers in our portfolio companies
Discussions and commercial negotiations between the companies begin.

Please note: Finnfund does not require its investee companies to purchase Finnish technology or services, and the successful completion of any commercial agreements remains the responsibility of the companies involved.

Other financing and advisory options within the Team Finland network

If Finnfund is not the right partner to finance your company’s project or collaboration in developing markets, Finnish companies can also benefit from services provided by other Team Finland organisations. If you are looking for market information or advice on internationalisation, we recommend contacting Finland’s network of embassies. Finnpartnership offers Finnish companies and organisations interested in developing markets financial support, advisory services and contacts that help build long-term business.