Development Partners International (DPI) has invested $45m for a significant minority stake in MNT Investments, the holding company for Mashroey and Tasaheel, market leaders in the consumer finance and microfinance sectors in Egypt. 

The investment will be financed through DPI’s second fund, ADP II.

Through the investment, DPI will partner with existing majority shareholder, GB Capital, a wholly owned subsidiary of GB Auto, a leading automotive company based in the Middle East and North Africa, and Mounir Nakhla, the founder and CEO of MNT Investments. 

Mounir Nakhla will continue to lead the day-to-day operations of the business.

Mashroey, founded in 2009, offers financing options to micro-entrepreneurs for the purchase of utility vehicles with a focus on the Bajaj brand, a GB Auto product.

Tasaheel, founded in 2015, provides direct microfinance lending to eligible clients, with a focus on group loans to skilled working women.

Both Mashroey and Tasaheel aims to help micro-entrepreneurs generate higher returns to improve their living standards, which, in turn supports overall community development and economic growth.

MNT Investments has a strong nationwide network with over 220 branches and more than 5,000 employees currently serving in excess of 400 thousand customers, helping to drive forward financial inclusion in Egypt.

Working in partnership with management and GB Capital, Mashroey and Tasaheel will benefit from DPI’s extensive financial services expertise and active portfolio management approach across the continent. 

With the support of DPI, MNT Investments will look to strengthen its digital strategy, expand its branch network and implement an ESG plan, in order to help provide greater access to its existing and new customer base in addition to supporting its ambitious growth initiatives.

Sofiane Lahmar, DPI Partner, said: “We look forward to the partnership with GB Capital and Dr. Raouf Ghabbour, in backing Mounir Nakhla and his strong management team. We view MNT Investments as a high growth company operating in a very exciting and fast growing industry in Egypt.” 

The investment in MNT marks the third investment in Egypt from the ADP II fund, having now deployed approximately $150m in Egypt. 

“This underpins our truly pan-African approach to investing into industries and markets that benefit from the growing middle class,” said Lamar.

Raouf Ghabbour, Chairman and CEO of GB Auto, said: “GB Auto has great belief in the prospects of MNT and with the support of DPI, we see great opportunities for the growth of the business in new markets. DPI have proven experience and expertise of the market and we look forward to working with the team.”

Mounir Nakhla, MNT Investment Founder and CEO, added: “We are very excited to have the backing of DPI, a leading private equity firm in Africa and whom we have known for a long time. We look forward to bringing on their expertise to help us institutionalize and further grow the business.”