Highlights from “Inspiring Impact”, the private equity fund’s Impact Report that shares its impact and investment activities from 2021:
• Portfolio companies’ activities generated impact for over 10M people in more than 55 countries and led to avoidance of 1.65M metric tons of CO2
• New investments made in healthcare and education companies
• First portfolio exit announced in November 2021
• Invested USD142M to-date with an AUM of USD 300M
29 March 2022, Singapore – Impact private equity fund ABC Impact (formerly known as ABC World Asia) today launched its annual Impact Report sharing outcomes generated by its portfolio companies in 2021. This is the second Impact Report by the Singapore-based investor, which aligns its investment strategy with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (“UN SDGs”).
In 2021, ABC Impact portfolio companies generated impact for over 10M people from more than 55 countries while employing some 10,000 workers. The fund also estimates that its portfolio companies’ activities had led to the avoidance of about 1.65M metric tons of CO2 in 2021. To date, the fund has invested USD142M across seven companies pursuing solutions in financial and digital inclusion, better health and education, climate and water solutions, and sustainable food and agriculture.
Healthcare and Education In Focus
David Heng, founder and CEO of ABC Impact, said, “The healthcare and education sectors came into sharper focus for us in 2021. In healthcare, the adverse conditions created by COVID-19 have placed significant burdens on health systems in many countries and accentuated the gaps in access and delivery. In education, COVID-19 created disruptions in on-site education for many young schoolchildren. The companies we invested in are addressing these issues to create positive impact at scale.”
Over the course of the 2021, the fund invested in Healthcare At Home India (“HCAH”) and Vedantu. These two investments are in line with UN SDG 3 – “Good Health and Well Being”; and SDG 4 – “Quality Education”, respectively. Out-of-hospital care specialist HCAH supported over 800,000 patients with quality homecare in 2021 to relieve burden on the health system in India. In the same year, online education provider Vedantu delivered online supplementary education content to over 4M students across India to alleviate curriculum disruptions caused by COVID-19.
Having to divert resources to cope with the virus at many primary healthcare outlets has led to secondary negative healthcare consequences, such as worsening chronic diseases from lack of timely care. Meanwhile, there continues to be an increasing need to improve access to quality education in order to improve social mobility among youths in underserved regions. The fund has thus directed capital towards these areas to achieve measurable outcomes.
In November 2021, the fund announced its maiden exit with the proposed divestment of clean energy solutions provider Sunseap Group to the world’s fourth-largest renewable energy producer, EDP Renewables. The transaction successfully closed in February this year.
Inspiring Impact with a Refreshed Identity
David added, “We have recently adopted a new brand identity as our impact journey continues. Our new name ABC Impact highlights our singular focus on impact and our vision to invest towards an active, beautiful, and clean world. Impact investing at its core is about people and our collective well-being as one global community. We continue to be inspired daily by the companies we nurture and those who are impacted positively by them.”
The 2021 report titled “Inspiring Impact” highlights the ABC Impact portfolio companies and their work, as well as those who are empowered by the innovative solutions created. The report also includes an overview of ABC Impact’s methodology and a deeper look at how the fund analyses impact for healthcare investments in alignment with UN SDG 3 – Good Health and Well Being.
The report content can be explored on www.abcworld.com.sg/impactreport2021with a full PDF version available for download.
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About ABC Impact
ABC Impact is a Singapore-headquartered and Asia-focused private equity fund dedicated to impact investing. We invest in companies that drive positive change by addressing the world’s most pressing challenges such as climate change, resource scarcity, and deepening inequality. Our investment themes include financial and digital inclusion, better health and education, climate and water solutions, sustainable food and agriculture, and smart and liveable cities.