59 billion euros.. A French fund manages invest in Morocco
STOA of the Deposit and Trust Fund concluded two deals worth 60 million euros
Shrouq
The CDC, the largest state financial institution in France with €59 billion ($63 billion) in assets under management, first took an interest in Morocco with its STOA investment fund.
The fund was established in 2017 through the French Deposit and Trust Fund, and it plans to invest 600 million euros, half of which will be directed to the African continent, as it opened offices in the cities of Casablanca, Morocco, and Nairobi, Kenya, in addition to Sao Paulo, Brazil.
600 million euros
The fund was established in 2017 through the French Deposit and Trust Fund, and it plans to invest 600 million euros, half of which will be directed to the African continent, as it opened offices in the cities of Casablanca, Morocco, and Nairobi, Kenya, in addition to Sao Paulo, Brazil.
said Ayoub Sami, investment manager at STOE Fund "Attention is focused on the African continent in general and mainly on Morocco, which has one of the most attractive investment frameworks in the region," and he expected the kingdom to receive 100 million euros in investment from the fund in the near term.
On May 9, the fund announced that it had entered into negotiations with Building Logistics Services, a company specialized in the logistics sector in Morocco, to purchase a minority stake at a value of 30 million euros.
On May 11, a deal was signed to buy a stake in Oncorad, which operates a network of private clinics in Morocco, for €30 million, in partnership with the Moroccan investment fund CDG Invest.
Last year, Morocco attracted foreign direct investment of about 21 billion dirhams. France is the first foreign investor in the Kingdom with a value of 11.6 billion dirhams, followed by the United States of America with 7.8 billion dirhams, then the UAE with 4 billion dirhams, according to figures from the Office of Exchange, which is the government agency in charge of foreign trade.
Communications and desalination of sea water
The French Fund is constantly searching for investment opportunities in other areas in Morocco, such as telecommunications, sea water desalination, waste and education, through partnerships with the public sector or local and international investors.
Morocco seeks to stimulate the private sector to invest in order to raise its share of total investment to two-thirds by 2035, compared to the current one-third, by adopting a new law that provides financial and tax incentives for local and foreign investors.
The investment director of the French Fund indicated that "investments in infrastructure and energy need an in-depth study of the local context and the environmental, climatic and social repercussions, in addition to the availability of the condition of transparency with the various stakeholders."
Over the past five years, the fund has made 15 investments worth approximately 450 million euros, most of which are in African countries, including Cameroon, South Africa, Kenya and Morocco, along with Brazil. It is expected to adopt a new investment plan in the next few years after implementing the first phase plan of 600 million euros.
