SANAD Fund

What SANAD Fund does

SANAD Fund for MSME is a Luxembourg-domiciled impact investment fund (structured as a SICAV-SIF) that finances micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) across the Middle East, North Africa, and selected Sub-Saharan African markets. Initiated in 2011 by KfW Development Bank with co-investment from the European Commission and BMZ, and managed by Finance in Motion, the fund operates through three core mechanisms: a Debt Sub-Fund providing senior and subordinated debt (USD 1M–USD 25M tickets, up to 10-year tenors, local currency options) to partner financial institutions; Equity Sub-Funds (ESF I at USD 35M in 2012 and ESF II at USD 59M in 2019) providing patient equity and quasi-equity capital to financial service providers and fintechs; and an Advisory & Capacity Building arm delivering technical assistance across digital transformation, women's economic empowerment, agricultural finance, and risk management.

As of Q4 2025, SANAD manages USD 557M in assets under management, has executed USD 1B in cumulative investments, and supports 48 active partner institutions across 10 countries, with regional offices in Cairo, Beirut, and Nairobi. The fund facilitates financing indirectly through banks, microfinance institutions, leasing companies, and non-bank financial institutions — supplemented by direct equity investments in fintech (Blnk, Telda, POSRocket) and agribusiness value chains (Capital Agro, Maisadour Maroc) — reaching end-borrowers who are disproportionately young, female, and rural. Investors include KfW, EU, BMZ, FMO, OeEB, SECO, GLS Bank, Calvert Impact Capital, and ASN Bank. The fund completed its transition to a fully AIFMD-regulated Luxembourg structure in 2025, enhancing governance and capital-mobilization capacity, and holds BlueMark 'Practice Leader' status since 2022 for impact management.

Name

SANAD Fund

Legal name

SANAD Fund for MSME S.A., SICAV-SIF

Website

https://sanad.lu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SANAD Fund for MSME is a Luxembourg-domiciled impact investment fund, managed by Finance in Motion, providing debt and equity financing plus advisory services to financial institutions and MSMEs across MENA and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Impact Investment Fund for MSME Finance

NAICS

Open-End Investment Funds (525910)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Miscellaneous Business Credit Institution (6159)

akta.pro primary industry

SDG / Thematic Sustainable Investment Funds (FSANAJAN)

akta.pro secondary industry

Impact Investment & Development Investment Funds (BPADACAO)

Keywords

• Impact investment fund
• MSME financing
• Development finance
• Microfinance institutions
• Financial inclusion

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfurt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Fund Management Fees: SANAD operates as an impact investment fund managed by Finance in Motion, generating returns through management fees and investment performance on its debt and equity sub-funds targeting financial inclusion in MENA and SSA.
2. Investment Returns - Debt Sub-Fund: Senior and subordinated debt investments to financial institutions generating interest income. Ticket sizes range from USD 1M to USD 25M, with terms up to 10 years and local currency lending options.
3. Investment Returns - Equity Sub-Funds: Equity and quasi-equity investments in fintech and financial service providers. Ticket sizes from USD 1.0m to USD 8.0m+, with exits through trade sales, IPOs, or secondary sales. ESF I (USD 35M, 2012) and ESF II (USD 59M, 2019).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

SANAD Fund for MSME is an impact investment fund that finances micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the MENA region and Sub-Saharan Africa. It operates through three main mechanisms: a Debt Sub-Fund providing senior and subordinated debt to financial institution partners (banks, MFIs, leasing companies); Equity Sub-Funds (ESF I & II) providing patient capital to financial service providers including fintech innovators; and Advisory & Capacity Building services strengthening partner institutions and end-borrowers. The fund is managed by Finance in Motion and structured as a Luxembourg SICAV-SIF.

Product overview

SANAD Fund for MSME is an impact investment fund providing financing and advisory services to underserved micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the Middle East, North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa. The fund operates through three main mechanisms: (1) the Debt Sub-Fund providing debt financing to financial institution partners; (2) Equity Sub-Funds (ESF I & ESF II) providing equity capital to financial service providers, including fintech innovators; and (3) Advisory & Capacity Building services offering technical assistance to financial institutions and MSMEs. The fund has reached USD 1 billion in cumulative investments since inception and manages USD 557M in assets under management. Additional programs include the SANAD ElevateHer Accelerator and Advancing Women Entrepreneurship accelerator for women-led startups. The fund is managed by Finance in Motion and serves 10 active investment countries across MENA and SSA.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Debt Sub-Fund Provides senior and subordinated debt financing to financial institutions including banks, microfinance institutions, leasing companies, and non-bank financial institutions in MENA and SSA. Targets MSME loans, housing loans, and agricultural loans with ticket sizes of USD 1M to USD 25M and terms up to 10 years. Includes local currency lending options to mitigate exchange rate risk for partners.
• Equity Sub-Funds (ESF I & ESF II) Provides patient equity and quasi-equity capital to financial service providers across MENA and SSA. ESF I focused on greenfield institution building; ESF II supports technology-enabled financial service providers. Ticket sizes from USD 1.0M to USD 8.0M+, with exits through trade sales, IPOs, or secondary sales.
• Advisory & Capacity Building Provides targeted advisory services and capacity building for financial institutions and MSMEs. Focus areas include digital transformation, agricultural finance, women's economic empowerment, sustainability, and risk management. Approximately USD 33M in projects with 417 projects managed and 51,000 people benefitting since inception.
• SANAD ElevateHer Accelerator An accelerator program for women-led or gender-inclusive startups in MENA and SSA regions, co-launched with Seedstars in 2025. Offers capacity building, mentorship, investor training, and networking opportunities for early- and growth-stage ventures.
• Advancing Women Entrepreneurship in MENA & SSA Accelerator Cross-regional accelerator program designed to equip up to 40 female-led or oriented startups with tailored capacity building, mentoring, and clearer pathways to capital. Six-month regional program combining workshops, mentoring, and peer learning.
• Technical Assistance Facility Advisory projects developed with partners on topics including entrepreneurship, female empowerment, digitalization, sustainability, agricultural finance, and risk management. Includes MSMEs, Equality, Digital solutions, Resilience, Outreach, and Continuity planning focus areas.

Quantifiable outcome

• $2.3B in sub-loans facilitated to MSMEs and households
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, partnership, key partner, accelerator partner and research partner.

• Finance in Motion GmbHcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFund Manager providing investment advisory, strategy, and investor relations. Established impact asset manager with 20+ years investing in emerging markets and presence across MENA since 14 years.
• MastercardpartnershipStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal payments technology company partnered with Telda (SANAD fintech investee) to launch integrated financial services combining payments and investment features.
• Women in Business Arabiakey partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerOnline network community of 40,000 businesswomen. Partnered with SANAD's Advisory & Capacity Building to support the Women on Board program preparing women for advisory roles.
• Womenpreneur Initiativekey partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitiative supporting women entrepreneurs in MENA. Partnered with SANAD for the Womenpreneur Tour expanded to sub-Saharan Africa in 2024, engaging 200+ stakeholders.
• Seedstarsaccelerator partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal venture capital firm specializing in emerging markets. Co-launched SANAD ElevateHer Program for women-led startups in MENA and SSA.
• Frankfurt School of Finance & Managementresearch partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerConducted MSME market scoping mission in Syria to assess political, regulatory, and macroeconomic dynamics for potential future interventions.

Scale indicators42 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Acumen: Global impact investment pioneer providing patient capital to early-stage social enterprises serving the poor. While Acumen focuses more on direct equity to enterprises rather than fund-of-funds intermediation, it targets the same underserved MSME segments and serves overlapping DFIs and impact LPs.
• Triodos Investment Management: European sustainable investment manager offering debt and equity funds focused on financial inclusion, climate, and impact themes. Comparable to SANAD in deploying blended capital to MFIs and SMEs in emerging markets, though with broader thematic reach beyond MENA/SSA.
• European Investment Fund (EIF): EU specialist institution providing risk finance to SMEs across Europe and emerging markets. Comparable as a large institutional impact investor with mandates overlapping SANAD's, though with broader geographic scope and significant involvement as a counterparty in EU-backed structures.

Direct peers

• Cordaid Investment Management: Dutch impact asset manager providing debt and equity to financial institutions in fragile and emerging markets. Comparable to SANAD in its focus on inclusive finance in challenging geographies, including regions like sub-Saharan Africa with high MSME unmet demand.
• BlueOrchard Finance: Swiss-based impact investment manager operating fund-of-funds and direct debt strategies targeting microfinance and SMEs across emerging markets. Directly comparable to SANAD's fund-of-funds debt and equity approach, with overlapping investor base of European DFIs and private impact LPs.
• Triple Jump: Dutch impact investment manager providing debt and equity to financial institutions serving underserved segments in emerging markets. Closely comparable to SANAD in fund structure (multiple sub-funds), institutional investor base, and emphasis on financial inclusion via local partners.
• Symbiotics Group: Swiss impact investment advisory firm that originates, structures, and manages investment funds for financial inclusion. Comparable to SANAD in originating impact debt/equity products and serving a similar base of DFIs, private foundations, and institutional impact investors.
• Incofin Investment Management: Belgian impact asset manager focused on financial inclusion and the missing middle. Provides debt and equity to financial institutions serving MSMEs in emerging markets, with similar institutional investor base and direct overlap in microfinance/SME lending strategies.
• responsAbility Investments: Swiss impact asset manager providing debt and equity financing to financial institutions and SMEs in emerging markets. Operates similar fund-of-funds structures with comparable thematic focus on financial inclusion and climate, serving overlapping MENA/SSA geographies.

Others

• FMO (Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank): Dutch development bank investing in financial institutions, SMEs, and infrastructure across emerging markets. Acts as both an investor in SANAD (limited partner) and a peer in the broader development finance ecosystem, deploying similar blended debt/equity to MENA/SSA partners.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SANAD_MSME
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sanad-investment-company

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments10 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SANAD Fund