NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Friday, April 15, 2005

It is reported that a New York-based private investment banking firm is putting together a $1 billion hedge fund -yes, “b” as in billion. The fund intends to invest in projects in selected African countries. The banking firm, which has Ghanaian involvement, has developed a relationship with a major European bank to manage the hedge fund’s relationships with its clients in Africa.
The firm’s use of sophisticated finance and investment tools-derivatives, arbitrage, leverage, etc. – will enable its hedge fund to provide long term financing at very competitive interest costs. For example, through the use of derivatives, it could structure up to 20-year loan facilities for projects, which hitherto only the multilateral and bilateral institutions have been able to offer.
Article found here.