New entity takes stake in social housing manager in debut deal
NEW YORK: The social impact investment market is growing rapidly around the world after a prolonged birth.
Zamo Capital, which takes stakes in impact investment firms, has made its first deal, investing in Social and Sustainable Capital (SASC), a British social housing investment manager.
The investment is a response to a growing demand for social housing driven by the pandemic, Zamo said in a statement. “The impact of Covid-19 has increased the already considerable demand for safe, stable and appropriate housing for the most disadvantaged in our society and reinforced the appeal of stable rental payments paid by the government,” the firm said in a statement.
The financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
Created in 2012, London-based SASC provides loans of between £2m to £5m to small and medium-sized UK charities, which offer accommodation and support to vulnerable people, according to its website. SASC is currently raising its Social and Sustainable Capital Housing (SASH) fund, set up in 2019 with a £100m target. The fund’s goal is to provide homes for 10,000 people who are homeless, or at risk of becoming so, whilst generating attractive returns for investors.
“The SASC housing fund, backed by both property and very stable government welfare payments, helps transform social enterprises from being renters of property to owners. It provides investors with an opportunity for commercial returns as well as a way to fulfill their ESG obligations,” said Jim Roth, founder, and partner of Zamo.
Roth, who co-founded LeapFrog Investments, an impact-focused private equity firm targeting investments in Africa and Asia, launched Zamo in November 2019.
The firm is Europe’s first specialist investor in impact investment firms and focuses on providing scale to impact funds by acquiring equity stakes in the managers. Zamo is backed by Big Society Capital, a UK-based social investment firm, which has committed £15m to the firm, according to its website.