For Investors

For Investors

For Investors

The ACT Fund offers investors a compelling opportunity to access one of the most underfinanced yet high-potential segments of the global economy—agricultural value chains in emerging markets. By investing in agri-SMEs at the centre of these systems, the Fund delivers a powerful combination of financial returns and measurable impact.

The Opportunity

Agricultural commodity markets across emerging economies represent a USD 166 billion  opportunity, driven by rising global demand. Yet, these markets remain constrained by a persistent financing gap for SMEs—creating a clear and attractive entry point for investors.

ACT Fund bridges this gap by channelling capital into scalable, high-impact businesses that connect smallholder farmers to markets, strengthen supply chains, and drive long-term value creation.

Our Strategy

ACT Fund’s strategy is designed to unlock the potential of agricultural value chains by investing in high-impact agri-SMEs that connect smallholder farmers to markets, finance, and sustainable growth.

At its core, our strategy combines targeted private credit investments, technical assistance, and a clear impact framework to drive both financial performance and measurable development outcomes.

Investing Where It Matters Most

We focus on established agri-SMEs operating at critical points in agricultural value chains—such as aggregation, processing, and export. These businesses play a pivotal role in linking smallholder farmers to markets and enabling value creation.

Our target investees typically:

  • Have a proven track record and positive financial performance
  • Operate in high-potential commodity value chains (e.g. coffee, cocoa, staple crops)
  • Work directly with large networks of smallholder farmers
  • Are ready to scale operations and impact

By strengthening these businesses, we create multiplier effects across entire ecosystems—supporting farmers, improving supply chains, and increasing resilience.

Tailored Debt

ACT Fund provides structured financing solutions aligned with agricultural business cycles and SME growth needs.

Our financing approach includes:

  • Trade finance and working capital to support seasonal operations
  • Capex financing to enable expansion and value addition
  • Quasi-equity instruments to strengthen balance sheets

With ticket sizes typically ranging from USD 1.5M to 5M and tenors of 1–5 years, our investments are designed to be both flexible and scalable.

Blended Capital Structure

ACT Fund uses a catalytic blended finance structure to mobilize private capital into high-impact agricultural markets.

This structure enables investors to participate in emerging market opportunities while mitigating risk.

Technical Assistance as a Core Pillar

A dedicated Technical Assistance (TA) Facility complements our investments by strengthening both SME performance and smallholder outcomes.

TA supports:

  • Adoption of regenerative and climate-resilient practices
  • Operational improvements and capacity building
  • Climate risk management and supply chain resilience

By combining capital with expertise, we enhance both the commercial success of investees and the impact delivered to farmers.

 

Impact-Driven Investment Approach 

ACT Fund’s strategy is anchored in a Theory of Change that links financing to tangible outcomes for smallholder farmers and ecosystems.

Through our Inclusive Regenerative Agriculture framework, we:

  • Improve farmer incomes and livelihoods
  • Strengthen climate resilience and reduce emissions
  • Enhance biodiversity and soil health

Impact is measured using robust frameworks and indicators, ensuring transparency and accountability across the portfolio.

A Scalable Model for Systemic Change

By integrating finance, technical assistance, and impact measurement, ACT Fund delivers a scalable model that transforms agricultural systems—creating long-term value for investors, businesses, and smallholder farmers alike.

Inclusive Regenerative Agriculture

Inclusive regenerative agriculture is at the heart of ACT’s transformative investment thesis. It drives economic, environmental and social impact. It offers a holistic approach to farming which not only regenerates soil health but also revitalizes local communities and enhances positive effects on biodiversity conservation.

Our Investment Model

ACT will build upon the CFC’s three decades of experience financing commodity value chains, backed by its commitment to contribute US$ 20 million in first-loss capital and offering expertise in Impact Investment and Technical Assistance management. ACT will have direct access to CFC’s proprietary and established deal flow which includes more than 500 plus loan requests per year.

ACT will deliver an attractive balance of impact and returns to investors offering returns ranging between 1%-5%, coupled with high levels of verifiable impact. ACT will invest in established SMEs with annual revenues of over US$ 1m through a range of short and long-term loans. This will primarily be in the form of trade finance, working capital and Capex loans, but ACT will also deploy smaller amounts of quasi-equity. The portfolio will be demonstrating CFC’s strong commitment as sponsor and advisor to the fund.