EG Capital

EG Capital is a private debt impact firm focused exclusively on Eastern and Southern Africa, deploying capital into SMEs operating in food security, health, education, and climate resilience. Founded and led by Managing Director Sandrine Henton, the firm targets sectors it describes as counter-cyclical and defensive, arguing that these areas simultaneously address supply chain vulnerability and climate adaptation. The geographic thesis centers on countries including Kenya, Zambia, Rwanda, Uganda, and Tanzania, which the firm identifies as among Africa’s fastest-growing economies with diversified economic bases distinct from commodity-dependent neighbors.

The firm’s flagship vehicle is the EG Economic Empowerment Fund (EG-EEF), a private debt fund structured as a limited partnership. The fund has attracted a notable mix of limited partners, including a Swiss family office (Regenerative), endowments managed by Schroders Cazenove Capital, the SDG Impact Finance Initiative backed by SECO and UBS Optimus Foundation, and USAID. Key features of the strategy include:

• A deliberate gender lens, targeting female-run SMEs and gender-balanced management teams
• Blended finance structures incorporating a European government guarantee in progress
• Technical assistance from 27four Investment Managers and 2x Global alongside capital deployment
• Selection to the ImpactAssets 50 2026 as an Emerging Impact Manager
• Backing from the African Women Impact Fund, one of ten selected African women-led fund managers

For family offices seeking Africa exposure through private credit with an explicit impact mandate, EG Capital offers a focused, operationally grounded vehicle with institutional co-investors already at the table. Pricing and minimum commitment terms are not publicly disclosed, and the fund is early-stage with first close still in progress, which means investors accept both illiquidity and emerging-manager risk as part of the allocation.