Despite continuing stresses relating to COVID-19, I am proud to report that as of 31-March-2021, most of MENA Capital’s investments have stabilized and recouped the valuation losses suffered in the early part of the pandemic. Key Income Generating Investments and all major Strategic Investments have continued to perform strongly. Distributions that were suspended temporarily as a precautionary measure have been resumed and only a few investments continue to face difficult headwinds due to the pandemic. A few partial exits were also completed during this year and proceeds were used to deleverage and de-risk the respective portfolios.
MENA Capital has an investment portfolio that balances growth/strategic investments targeting short to mid-term growth, and an income generating investment allocation to ensure a stable and sustainable income for the Company while safeguarding its liquidity position.The Company continues to closely evaluate investment opportunities sourced through strategic partners and ventures. During the financial year ending 31 Mar-2021, MENA Capital had a robust pipeline of 106 investment opportunities spanning tech, real estate, private equity and distressed credit among others. As of 31 Mar-2021, MENA Capital has committed 130% of itspaid-up share capital in promising investments in line with the Company’s investment policy.
We highly value the role of corporate governance in improving the overall performance especially in the current environment. Corporate governance in MENA Capital is a combination of internal and external global best practices aimed at reducing risk exposures for protecting and maximizing shareholders’ value.
We continue to closely watch global economic developments and emerging investment trends particularly, in the aftermath of the pandemic and assess their impact on our current portfolio and strategy for the years ahead. According to Goldman Sachs, the areas that are expected to attract continued attention of governments, investors and corporates in 2021 and beyond include climate, as President Biden begins to implement his climate agenda, the EU Green Taxonomy movesforward and investment vehicles like green bonds, carbon ETFs and ESG investing products, more broadly, continue to proliferate.
The diversified investment portfolio of the Company requiresit to identify, measure, aggregate, monitor and manage risks effectively and to allocate capital among its investments appropriately. Given the size of the Company and its operations, the Company has adequate risk management framework to identify and manage major risks.
