HCT Group raises largest growth capital investment in UK impact investment
Summary
In part, this stems from the assumption that my fellow passengers are oblivious to the high social impact nature of the company that is transporting them and the difference they make to their employees and the communities in which they operate. The other part is my pride in being part of the team at ClearlySo who have advised HCT Group over a number of years to help them grow and increase their impact.So it is my real thrill to announce that ClearlySo has helped HCT Group raise \xa310m in growth capital from a range of leading social impact and mainstream investors, including Big Issue Invest, Triodos, FSE Group, Social and Sustainable Capital, City of London Corporation, Esm\xe9e Fairbairn Foundation, The Phone Co-op and HSBC.HCT intends to use this capital to fund growth, to purchase new vehicles and depots, to improve their infrastructure and deliver greater impact for the communities that it serves and operates in. We believe its the largest growth capital transaction to date and represents a watershed moment for the ambition of socially and environmentally driven businesses and entrepreneurial charities around the UK, and the emerging impact investment sector which is supporting their growth.2. The funding package contains a range of financial instruments, including asset backed facilities, cash flow loans and a quasi-equity component, giving this deal a level of sophistication unseen before in our sector.4. That initial investment was recently repaid in full and met both the investors target financial returns of 7% overall, and also the impact targets.As Dai Powell, HCT Groups CEO explains: In times of financial constraint, HCT has proven that high-impact and high-quality service delivery is possible, and that working with social enterprises should be a key part of any local authoritys commissioning strategy.