Energy
Refined fuels and energy commodities moving through regional supply and export channels.
Southcity Structured Commodity Fund
Commodities do not move without working capital.
Structured trade, pre-shipment and export finance for producers, aggregators, exporters and traders in energy, petrochemicals and critical minerals.
Fund overview and market problem
The gap between production and payment.
African commodity businesses regularly hold confirmed demand and creditworthy buyers, yet cannot fund the cycle between producing or aggregating a cargo and being paid for it. Costs are incurred upfront; payment arrives after shipment and delivery.
Conventional lenders often withdraw from this gap. Balance sheets are small relative to transaction size, security sits in the commodity and the contract rather than in fixed assets, and the risk requires structuring capability rather than a credit score.
The Southcity Structured Commodity Fund finances that cycle. Transactions are structured, verified, collateralised and controlled so that each facility is self-liquidating from the proceeds of the trade it funds.
Target commodities and sectors
Where the fund transacts.
Petrochemicals
Petrochemical products and derivatives traded into industrial and regional markets.
Critical minerals
Copper, manganese, graphite, lithium and platinum group metals in concentrate and processed form.
Eligible counterparties
- Producers with contracted or contractable output
- Aggregators consolidating volume from multiple producers
- Exporters shipping into creditworthy offtake
- Traders operating defined, verifiable trade flows
Transaction assessment
Each transaction is assessed on the strength of the underlying trade: the commodity and its quality specification, the buyer's creditworthiness and payment mechanism, the sales and purchase contracts, the logistics and corridor plan, the experience of the counterparty and the integrity of all parties involved.
Trade finance products
- Structured trade finance
- Working capital advanced within a defined trade cycle against the underlying commodity, contracts and receivables.
- Pre-shipment finance
- Funding of production, aggregation, processing, storage and handling costs incurred before a cargo ships.
- Export finance
- Funding of confirmed export orders through to shipment, documentation and settlement by the buyer.
Collateral, risk controls and cash-flow structures
Control of the cargo and the cash.
Risk is managed structurally. Funds are released against verified milestones and repayment is directed from the buyer through controlled accounts rather than depending on the borrower's discretion.
- Verification of the commodity, contracts, counterparties and logistics chain
- Security over the commodity, contracts and receivables where applicable
- Collateral management and independent inspection arrangements
- Controlled cash-flow structures with designated collection accounts
- Settlement directed from creditworthy buyers rather than from the borrower
- Insurance, storage, handling and transit risk controls
Transaction lifecycle
A self-liquidating trade cycle.
Each transaction is structured to repay itself from the proceeds of the underlying trade. Funding is released against verified milestones, and settlement flows from a creditworthy buyer through controlled accounts.
- Step 01
Application
- Step 02
Verification
- Step 03
Structuring
- Step 04
Approval
- Step 05
Funding
- Step 06
Shipment
- Step 07
Buyer Settlement
- Step 08
Fund Repayment
Application → Verification → Structuring → Approval → Funding → Shipment → Buyer Settlement → Fund Repayment
Investor proposition
Short-cycle, self-liquidating exposure.
The fund offers institutional and professional investors exposure to African commodity trade flows through transactions that are short in duration, secured against the commodity and contracts, and repaid from settlement by creditworthy buyers.
Because each facility liquidates within its own trade cycle, capital recycles through successive transactions rather than remaining committed to a single long-dated asset.
Fund structure, terms and subscription information are contained in the private placement documentation and are made available only to qualifying investors, subject to a non-disclosure undertaking. No returns are guaranteed and no capital protection is offered.
Governance
Approval before capital.
- FSCA-licensed fund manager
- Authorised Financial Services Provider — FSP 52877
- Independent governance framework
- Independent-majority Investment Committees
- Limited Partner Advisory Committees
- Third-party fund administration
- Quarterly valuation and reporting
- Compliance oversight
- Conflict-of-interest controls
- Related-party transaction policy
ESG and responsible sourcing
Verified origin, verified conduct.
Transactions are subject to responsible sourcing requirements and chain-of-custody verification, with alignment to the IFC Performance Standards, health and safety expectations at production and handling points, and screening of counterparties and origin.
Development impact
Trade that supports industry.
Financing the trade cycle keeps producers operating, supports formal employment, enables local beneficiation to reach market and contributes to export growth and foreign-currency earnings across the SADC region.
For businesses seeking funding
Apply for funding.
Complete the funding application and attach your supporting documentation. You will receive a unique enquiry reference and an acknowledgement by email. Submission does not constitute an offer or approval of funding.
For institutional and professional investors
Request investor information.
Indicate the documentation you require. Documentation is not released automatically and is subject to investor qualification and a non-disclosure undertaking.