Citi has been appointed by Abraaj Capital group to provide fund administration services for its SME private enterprise fund.
Riyada Enterprise Development (RED) was established in 2009 to capitalize on the growing investment opportunities in the small and medium sized enterprise (SME) segment across a wide range of sectors in the Middle East and North Africa.
Tom Speechley, CEO, Riyada Enterprise Development and senior partner, Abraaj Capital said, “It is well recognised that SMEs are key contributors to job creation and economic growth. By facilitating access to long-term capital, Riyada Enterprise Development plays a crucial role in supporting the growth of high impact businesses and high potential entrepreneurs. We are confident that Citi’s regional expertise, coupled with its scalable fund services platform, will enable us to provide our investors with the independent administrative systems and best in class infrastructure that they require."
RED is sector agnostic and invests in entrepreneurially run and innovative businesses that are scalable into new regional markets. Since the establishment of the RED platform in 2009, the fund has invested in 13 SMEs across the MENA region in diverse sectors including agro-processing, media, pharmaceuticals and technology.
Sanjiv Sawhney, global head of Fund Services at Citi said, “Citi is committed to provide premier administrative services and market-leading technology to our private equity clients. We look forward to leveraging these resources to help the RED team achieve their growth objectives.”
