IFC eyes up to $40-M investment in Navegar
International Finance Corp. (IFC), the private sector lending arm of the World Bank Group, plans to invest up to $40 million in Navegar Fund III L.P., a private equity fund focused on companies in the Philippines across a range of industries.
In a disclosure, the IFC said its investment would account for no more than 20 percent of the fund’s targeted $250 million size.
In addition to its commitment to the fund, the World Bank Group unit will earmark another $40 million for direct investments in selected companies alongside Navegar.
Navegar is a “sector agnostic” growth equity fund that has so far backed nine local companies, including the Bistro Group, Dali and Bo’s Coffee.
The IFC said the fund was targeting investments of between $30 million and $50 million in companies in the Philippines across various sectors, including consumer, health care, logistics and business services.
Up to 15 percent of the fund could potentially be invested outside the Philippines.
“The fund is expected to increase access to private equity capital and value-creation for small to mid-cap companies, including companies that are female-owned or led,” the IFC said.
“The fund will create value for these companies through a strong emphasis on driving organizational transformation, regional expansion and improving governance and sustainability practices for investee companies,” it added.
Beyond the project, the IFC said Navegar’s success would strengthen the competitiveness of the private equity ecosystem in the Philippines by demonstrating its commercial viability to institutional investors.
This, as the IFC noted that fundraising has been challenging for country-focused funds like Navegar.
Between 2020 and 2024, such funds have only managed to raise $225 million per year on average. Further, the Philippines has not seen such fundraising activities since 2020.
“This could in turn attract a new mix of commercial investors and encourage entry of other country-focused funds in the Philippines,” it added.
In fiscal year 2025, the IFC committed a record $71.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging private sector solutions and mobilizing private capital to create a world free of poverty on a livable planet.
