The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has purchased a minority stake in Turkey-based global ready-to-wear retailer DeFacto for US$ 59 million.
The Bank's investment, a major capital move, will help DeFacto accelerate the Bank's growth and expand its footprint in the economies in which it operates. The transaction is also a first for the EBRD; DeFacto is the first Turkish non-food retail company in which the Bank is a partner.
DeFacto will use the investment to strengthen inclusion documents and transform human resources policies to better respond to the recruitment and training needs of employees with disabilities. The company will aim to increase its share of disabled employees in order to reach 5 percent in production, retail and office operations. The investment will also promote gender equality practices across the company.
The EBRD's priorities in Turkey include increasing the depth and resilience of the country's capital markets through the internationalization of Turkish companies and equity deals.
Hande Ilak, EBRD Vice President for Turkey, welcomed the agreement and said: “The EBRD remains committed to supporting a flexible, international and diversified capital market in Turkey and we see our partnership with DeFacto as a strong step towards this goal. DeFacto has great potential to be a driving force for the industry and the country, and we are happy to provide resources to the company while strengthening its inclusion and gender credentials.”
DeFacto CEO İhsan Ateş said, “Our partnership with the EBRD is a strong proof of our long-term global success. In 2022, we increased our sales revenues at home and abroad. We entered new markets and increased the number of our stores. We achieved record export figures and increased our e-commerce figures. With the EBRD's investment, we will increase the international share of our revenues to 70 percent by investing in new markets. We will continue to expand our new generation dealership and e-commerce models on top of our success in Europe.”
DeFacto is a global clothing retailer that offers affordable clothing in a wide range of categories. The company has a strong international presence, operating in more than 90 countries. The countries in which DeFacto operates are broadly similar to the countries in which the Bank operates, including Morocco, Kazakhstan and Egypt.
The EBRD is one of Turkey's leading institutional investors. Since 2009, it has invested approximately 17 billion Euros in various sectors of the country's economy, mostly in the private sector.
Be the first to comment