Description

Working Capital Associates provides direct financing to value chains of agriculture products from Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) and Latin America (Latam). So far, the company has raised 700.000€ through GoParity to fund three different organizations: a coffee cooperative in Peru (Peruvian Resilient Farming I and II); a cocoa company in Peru (Resilient Cocoa Farming I and II); and a family-owned cocoa company in Ecuador (Ecuadorian Cocoa Farming I and II). Three out of six campaigns (total amount of 250.000€ lent) have successfully reached their payments plan maturity. All investors have received their full capital invested and interest.

This is the third campaign aimed at providing working capital to this fair trade, certified, female-owned and female-led Peruvian organization dedicated to the aggregation, processing, and selling of cocoa and its derivatives (after Resilient Cocoa Farming I and II). Operating with more than 3.000 local producers in the regions of Cajamarca, San Martín, Amazonas, and Huánuco, that collectively produce 55% of the total cocoa produced in Peru, for a total aggregate of 23.400 metric tons per year.

The Company is located in Tarapoto (San Martin) and concentrates 10% of the local market share, ranking as the third-largest cocoa bean marketer in Peru. Its vision is to improve the quality of life of its farming partners, offering training and technical assistance, and to be recognized by the local and international community as a high-quality supplier, developing customized products, with commitment, ethics, and trust. This vision and strategy are reinforced by several certifications, from which Fair Trade (Comércio Justo) and USDA Organic should be highlighted.

The Fair Trade Certification is particularly relevant, as it places the Company in the 13% out of the 33 million global cocoa producers that have achieved such certification which, among others, ensures that the cocoa processing and procurement are free of child slavery labour – the Fair Trade certification is particularly strict in this regard, and with yearly inspections in the sourcing farms, has no tolerance for any abusive labour practices.

Peru is the sixth-largest producer of cocoa worldwide, the second largest organic cocoa producer (after the Dominican Republic), and the number one fair-trade organic cocoa producer worldwide. The worldwide demand for cocoa is growing and especially the demand for certified cocoa is expected to continue to grow in Europe over the next years, with two clear increasing trends: search for sustainable (certified) chocolate products, i.e. cocoa bean production that complies with social, environmental and economic aspects and where the whole process is successfully certified by a third party; and towards authentic ingredients and single origin cocoa products.

Less than ten years ago, thousands of farmers used their plots in the Northern Highlands of the Selva region to grow coca - while coca provided a steady income in remote regions, the illicit crop also brought with it the violence of drug traffickers and their allies. The government was eager to eradicate it and with the collaboration of the military, police, local, regional and national governments, and initiatives from international donors and the private sector, Peruvian coca farmers were converted to cocoa (and coffee) farming and Peru has, in the last years, quickly built a global reputation for producing traditionally cultivated, shade-grown, high-quality cocoa beans.

The Impact

Direct:

• Improve the financial health of smallholder producers: through providing the organization with transactional working capital, 3.000 small Peruvian cocoa farmers can have the needed liquidity required for a stable production process.
• Improve smallholder productivity: through providing technical and organic and fair-trade certifications assistance, training, education, social and health support to the farmers and their families, the Company promotes improved working conditions and access to an international export value chain to small producers, who own less than two hectares of land.
• Promotion of gender equality: the company is fully owned by its female CEO.

Indirect:

• Reduction of rural poverty: 3.000 smallholder farmer families will receive a higher profit margin for their produce, which can be allocated to more than pure subsistence.
• Promotion of organic and fair-trade production: all the cocoa produced is organic and certified by a third party. The production contributes to protecting the Selva Region, in the Peruvian Northern Highlands. With a shade crop, cocoa can be grown in forests and agroforestry systems, thus helping to enrich soils and protect them against erosion. Also, the fair-trade certification ensures that the processing and procurement of cocoa are guaranteed free of child labour, and there is no tolerance for any abusive labour practices.

Impact Indicators

750

people impacted

Contribution to the Sustainable
Development Goals

Sustainable Development Goals

Financial viability

The funds raised through this campaign will be used as Transactional Working Capital to provide liquidity to the Organization from its procurement and processing stage, all the way through its exports. 

Transactional Working Capital is a short-term debt financing asset that allows the seller to receive advance/early payments and the buyers to delay their payments. In commercial sales, standard market practice for payments is between 30 to 90 days from the time when the seller issues its invoice – such payment terms usually strain the cash availability of the seller for its own procurement, while allowing the buyer to hold on to their cash for longer. Often, the seller’s working capital gap is resolved by accessing traditional bank financing, which usually requires to be over-collateralized over hard assets (i.e. factories, buildings, machinery). However, due to the elevated requirements demanded by banks as guarantees for the loans, impossible to meet for smallholders, such bank loans seldom resolve any working capital gap.

Transactional Working Capital fills this gap without the need for collateral. That, in turn, obtains the following results for both the smallholders and the aggregator:

• Liquidity to procure raw produce: the aggregator/processor is able to grow its business by increasing the level of raw material procurement to fulfil new orders for its international buyers, without waiting for payment from existing buyers.
• Premium Prices: the producers receive a premium price that reflects the certified and fair trade value of the cocoa, resolving the cash pressure and eliminating the need to provide discounts to the buyer, in return for early payment.
• A higher profit margin that can be reinvested not only to pure subsistence but also in capacity building of technical agricultural skills and technologies, improving production standards, and yield investments in organic, fair trade, and quality certifications.

WCA maintains a Trade Credit Insurance Policy with a global insurance company providing worldwide trade credit insurance, surety, and collections services, with a strategic presence in 50 countries. The Project repayment will be guaranteed under such Trade Credit Insurance Policy, which effectively protects GoParity lenders from default in a credit-related event (e.g. insolvency, bankruptcy). The policy covers losses from Insolvency, Protracted Default, and Political Risk and covers up to 90% of the value of the underlying commercial transaction financed by WCA. As WCA provides up to 80% financing to any underlying commercial transaction, the policy in essence covers more than WCA’s entire financing.

This is the third campaign aimed at providing funding to this specific company, after two successful campaigns with a total amount of 300.000€. One of the campaigns has reached its payments plan maturity. All investors have received their full capital invested and interest.

Download Key Investment Information Sheet

The Promoter

About WCA (Working Capital Associates) LLP

WCA is the only female-owned and led company providing direct financing to value chains of agriculture products from Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) and Latin America (Latam).

WCA follows a themed responsible investment approach which “allows investors to address ESG issues by investing in specific solutions to them, such as renewable energy, waste, and water management, sustainable forestry and agriculture, health products and inclusive finance” (PRI).

The company follows two key themes:

The company also applies gender-lens to its investments, seeking to finance a significant level of female-led businesses that follow sustainable and responsibly managed standards.

WCA’s goal is to grow value chains by providing access to finance to SMEs, in the framework of three keys SDGs:

• SDG 2 - End hunger, achieve food security, and promote sustainable agriculture.
• SDG 12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.
• SDG 8 - Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment, and decent work for all

The company also applies a “No Harm” Impact Goal, when reviewing its investment opportunities and applying a negative screening to harmful/controversial products and industries.

The team is composed of ten professionals, with senior executive team members having 10+ years of experience in Emerging Markets and/or Trade Finance, and a collective experience in financing over USD1 billion in short-term debt and Emerging Markets transactions.

The team

Federica Sambiase

Founding Partner and CEO

Federica Sambiase is a senior Banking & Finance professional with 20+ years of experience in originating, advising and structuring corporate finance solutions for global clients.

Andrew Darling

Chief Structuring and Product Officer

Andrew Darling is a veteran Trade Finance specialist with over 40 years experience of providing funding to Corporates across a broad spectrum of products.

Jorge Cerna Coronado

Latam Origination and Relationship Management

Jorge Cerna is an investment banking & finance professional with 10+ years experience in origination, structuring and relationship management of local and regional clients in Latin America.

Gathuo Njoroge

SS Africa Origination and Relationship Management

Gathuo Njoroge is a finance and technology expert with over 10 years experience in product development, research, origination and operations of SME and corporates finance solutions across East African and US markets.

Ekaterina Kobzareva

Investments Manager

Ekaterina Kobzareva is experienced and highly qualified Investment professional with 6+ years in financial analysis, due diligence and deal structuring (both Buy side and Sell side) across a number of different industries.

Sara Piedrabuena

Designer and Latinamerican Coverage

Business Model

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