Annual Report 2018
BIO has published its annual report.
02-07-2019

BIO’s mission sets it on a challenging quest for balance between this focus on profit and the commitment to a sustainable and inclusive society in least developed or emerging countries. It is a delicate mix that pervades all of BIO’s activities and constitutes its DNA. And, much like it is for a tightrope walker, or a cyclist for that matter, to keep your balance, you must keep moving.
2018 Highlights
- BIO decided on 22 new investments for a total of € 150 M.
- BIO monitored 83 outstanding loan investments. BIO employees also personally participated in boards and committees of its 52 equity investments.
- BIO’s Special Operations team intensively accompanied clients in trouble. They managed to reduce BIO’s total provisions for the company’s outstanding investments from 5,96 % (2017) to 5,02 % (2018).
- BIO granted 10 subsidies totalling € 850,000 to new capacity building and technical assistance projects.
- 15 loans were reimbursed and 6 equity investments were exited.
- BIO established a new facility for investing in small projects with a particularly high development impact but with high risks and relatively lower expected financial return.
- In 2018, investment capital grew thanks to a capital injection by the Belgian State of € 61 M, of which € 20 M was earmarked for investments to combat climate change. Furthermore, the substantial net gain of € 67.8 M of 2017 on an investment in a Cambodian MFI was converted into capital, bringing BIO’s means available for investment to € 937.7 M.
- BIO has a brand new logo. The colours signal we are Belgian. Its style refers to our affiliation with Belgium’s development cooperation.
More news
News
Feronia/PHC - BIO’s mission is to invest in the most difficult places and circumstances.
25-11-2019
On the 25th of November, Human Rights Watch published a report on Feronia / PHC, and the DFIs who invested therein. Here you can find a joint statement from CDC Group, BIO, DEG, and FMO in response to the HRW report.
Read moreNews
A Message on the Tragic Death of Mr Joël Imbangola Lokwa
30-08-2019
On August 8th the Belgian magazine Le Vif/L’Express
published an article entitled « Mort d'un activiste congolais : la Belgique interpellée » (Death of a Congolese Activist; Belgium Concerned).
News
Côte d’Ivoire: BIO invests EUR 15m for Azito power plant expansion
25-07-2019
BIO joined a consortium of DFI partners led by PROPARCO, part of AFD Group, in a deal with Azito Energie S.A. for the expansion of the Azito power plant in Côte d’Ivoire.
Read more