There are a number of factors that impact on the ability of Growth Enterprises and SMEs to raise debt or equity capital. Some of these factors include limited access to cost effective short-term finance, scarcity of long-term ‘patient’ capital and limited access to funding, lack of capacity building, training and development services. The solution – GEM Portal, is for Growth Enterprises and SMEs to apply for funding through an efficient and convenient online platform which proactively identifies and capacitates enterprises through leveraging on technology and ensuring provision of appropriate capital and other support structures. The Financial Securities Exchange (FINSEC) a registered Securities Exchange in collaboration with the United National Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) and other development partners has come up with a solution that is specifically designed to assist SMEs in accessing debt or equity capital. The GEM Portal is coming to bridge all these gaps as it is a transformative and interactive solution for growth enterprises. A great feature of the solution is the availability of a diverse set of funding options which suit the targeted enterprises and their needs, the options are as follows: Debt funding – borrowing by issuing debt instruments for those that may not want their business to be diluted; includes short, medium- and long-term debt. Equity funding- raising capital by selling off part of the businesses stock to the public. Restricted Offers such as: Private Equity- equity funding by pre-identified investors. Pre-IPO financing- for a High Growth Enterprise (HGE) raising capital in the build up to its IPO, usually at a discount. IPO Pathfinder- for enterprises seeking commitment from qualifying investors to participate in an IPO before lodging a prospectus with FINSEC. Venture Capital - for start-ups Enterprises seeking to raise capital are exposed to a wide range of investors depending on the size and requirements of the business. These investors include: Qualified Investors – with the requisite knowledge and experience of investing in growth enterprises; Institutional Investors High Net-Worth Individuals Diaspora Investors- investors based in the diaspora willing and able use their remittances for investment purposes; Venture Capitalists - provide capital to diverse start-ups that exhibit high growth potential Private Equity Firms - provide short- and long-term debt/equity funding for businesses Simple process for SMEs and High Growth Enterprises SME Applicant creates their user accounts. They express their interest to raise capital by providing basic KYC information. Applicant completes the online application. Applicant completes the online application. Simple processes for Advisors Nominated Advisors creates their user accounts. Advisor accesses incoming applications ranked according to their scores, sector and geographical region Nominated Advisor carries out evaluations, assessments and due diligence on the applications. Qualifying applications will be recommended to investors and Pre-IPO f
