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A loan of EUR 250,000 will empower 500 families in India to turn their farms into sustainable businesses with a biodigester.
Only available for tax residents of the Netherlands.
Basic info:
Issuer: Sistema.bio
Currency: EUR
Amount: 250,000
Maturity: 36 months, semi-annually and linearly amortizing
Interest rate: 5.25% p.a.
Read the information document here
Summary
Sistema.bio is a Mexican social enterprise that has been operating since 2010. We manufacture, sell, distribute, install, and finance high-quality biodigesters as turnkey packages for small-scale farmers. Our mission is to create value from waste all around the world: renewable energy (biogas) and organic fertilizer.
The problem: smallholder farmers produce almost 80% of the worldwide food. However, they are also the population that faces important barriers such as climate change, soil degradation and lack of access to financial services to improve their lives.
The solution: biodigesters and full wrap-around service allow farmers to benefit from what used to be a problem (manure) to transform it into renewable energy. The digester also is a waste management system and contributes to eliminating pollution spots and reducing greenhouse gases. In that way, farmers can cook without smoke, avoiding pulmonary diseases, and also increase the productivity of their farms with organic fertilizer.
Sistema.bio has a holistic approach to address poverty, food security, and climate change, we work through three axes: technology, capacity building and financing. This solution allows us to solve problems efficiently and end the circle of disadvantages that previously seemed impossible to break, to create a more sustainable, equitable and empathic world without waste.
The project
With a loan of EUR 250,000 Sistema.bio will be able to manufacture and export 500 biodigesters to clients in India. After the half-day installation provided by Sistema.bio, farmers will start displacing fossil fuels, powering their farms with renewable energy and increase their crop production with organic fertilizer.
The loan addresses the gap between the moment the biodigester is produced and the moment it is installed and paid by small farmers. Each euro we´re going to receive from Lendahand community will cover the cost of manufacturing, shipping and installing biodigesters ordered by our clients.
Impact so far
The team
Alex Eaton
CEO and co-founder of Sistema.bio, Alex was working on solar energy projects in Central America when he discovered the potential of biodigesters and transformed a low-quality technology into a sustainable, empathetic, profitable and global social enterprise.
Esther Altorfer
CFO of Sistema.bio, Esther is passionate about leveraging innovative financing structures to improve access and affordability of biodigesters to small farmers.
Partners
● BID
● ENGIE
● LCEF
● Factor[e]
● Shell Foundation
● Kiva
Awards
● Social Business of the year, 2010 Businesses in Development (BiD Network)
● Switzer Environmental Leadership Fellow
● Fellow Ashoka, New Ventures Mexico
● Buckminster Fuller Challenge 2017 Finalists
● Endeavor entrepreneurs
● B Corp
● GIIRS Company
● UBS Visionaries
| Company name | Sistema.bio 9 |
| CEO | Alex Eaton |
| Founded | 2010-01-01 |
| Location | Mexico City |
| Sector | Sustainable energy projects |
| Turnover | €1,500,000 |
| Employees | 80 |
| Type | Direct investment |
| Issuer | Sistema.bio |
| Funding target | €250,000 |
| Annual interest | 5.25% |
| Maturity | 36 months |
| Repayment period | Semiannually |
| Currency | EUR |
| Terms and conditions | Show |
| Note terms | Download |
| Information document issuer | Download |
Our local partners cover the risk of currency exchange rates and loan defaults. They do this by maintaining financial reserves for this purpose . In addition, there is an option to claim their equity if needed. While these measures are intended to minimize the risk to funders, our local partners face risks of their own that could effect their ability to secure a loan. These include: - bankruptcy - currency exchange rates - fraud - operational risks - political and regulatory changes - natural disasters or epidemics.
If you invest direct in a company, hence not via a local partner, risks of default are not covered. As the risk that comes with direct lendings is generally higher than an investment through a local partner, the interest rate is also higher.
There is also some operational risk at Lendahand. An example might be that Lendahand is unable to find shareholders to finance their activities. In such a case, Lendahand will handle outstanding loans at the best of its ability. At the same time, our ability to legally address non-payment from local partners becomes understandably difficult.
Local partners must adhere to our mission and work with us to provide loans that are affordable. This insures that local entrepreneurs have access to financing that allows them to grow their business. A local partner must also have a track record. In other words, they must have proven themselves as a meso-credit provider for SMEs. This means (for instance) that the partner must have a solid credit portfolio, along with enough buffers and equity to compensate for unexpected downturns. We also check the organizational structure of the partner and how robust their (internal) procedures are. Finally, the loans that a local partner receives via Lendahand must be in proportion to the partner's total balance sheet. A healthy balance between effectuating influence and independence is crucial. If you would like to receive more information on the financial indicators we employ, please contact us via info@lendahand.com.
When currency exchange risks become too high for a local partner, Lendahand will urge the local partner to cover these risks. In some scenario's the local partner is contractually obliged to comply with these demands.
Lendahand will always conduct due diligence when a Company requests for a direct loan. To provide more insights on risks, an independent partie comes in to perform brief analysis on direct loans. The results can be downloaded on the project detail page of the direct loan. However, this analysis serves primarily as a tool for your own opinion and conclusion. Pay attention to the fact this analysis is not an investing advice.
Normally we don't. Local partners take care of the repayment, even if (some) entrepreneurs are unable to do so themselves. If the local partner is for some reason unable to repay then there is a chance of partial or full loss of your money. For this reason Lendahand only selects financially solid partners based on strict criteria.
Also, for most direct loans no guarantee is provided. For these investments currency risks are covered however.
Sometimes - and only for some direct investments in Africa - our partner Sida, part of the Swedish government, will provide a guarantee with a maximum of 50%. If this is the case, it will be indicated explicitly.
Yes. The Dutch Authority Financial Markets (AFM) has provided Hands-on B.V. (with trade name 'Lendahand') in September 2016 with an investment firm license in accordance with article 2:96 of the Financial Markets Supervision Act (Wft). Placing orders on Lendahand's website is therefore an AFM regulated activity. Lendahand also meets its minimum capital requirements of EUR 125,000 following its license as required by De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB).
Lendahand uses an exemption from an approved prospectus that is available up to EUR 5 Million per year.
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Our local partners and Companies bear the exchange rate risks. We settle the loan, redemptions, and interest payments in euro.
If Hands-On BV (containing the brand name Lendahand) would go bankrupt trades between Lendahand and payment service provider Intersolve EGI would cease immediately. Intersolve will then transfer the funds in your personal wallet to your bank account (Note: if at this time the project you have invested in has been fully funded and the money has thus been transferred to the local partner, these funds will not be transferred back to your bank account). Intersolve will then in consultation with a trustee handle all repayments between the investors and investees up until the final repayment of the last project has taken place.
Additionally, Lendahand is part of the investor compensation scheme (ICS). This scheme aims to compensate individuals and small businesses who have trusted money and or financial instruments (such as notes or options) to a licensed bank, investment firm or a financial institution in case the financial firm is unable to meet its obligations arising from claims related to the investment service (in other words, if Hands-On BV is not keeping track of the acquired notes by investors in the Wge depot correctly). The ICS guarantees an amount of up to EUR 20,000 per individual. For more information, go to www.toezicht.dnb.nl/en/2/50-202210
| Total assets | €8,088,062.28 |
| Revenue (per year) | €2,388,745.61 |
| Equity / total assets | 0.68% |
| Liquidity | 28.11% |
+ 485 other investors