Subhead:FinDev invested $43.4 million in a foreign company that reported $138.6 million in total losses.#
FinDev Canada invested millions in a failing Kenyan cellphone company without due diligence, a fact revealed in a six-year-delayed internal memo.
FinDev, a 2017 Development Finance Institute with a $300 million budget, invested US$10 million in Nairobi-based M-Kopa Holdings Ltd., which sells cell phones and housewares door-to-door.
Since 2018, FinDev has invested $43.4 million in privately held M-Kopa shares, with the company reporting $138.6 million in total losses.
.@FinDev_Canada internal files disclose no “due diligence” before it sank millions in money-losing Kenya cellphone firm with zero parliamentary scrutiny, told staff to make it sound “convincing.”
Memo withheld from Blacklock’s for 6 years under #ATI #cdnfoi… pic.twitter.com/y8w7AO3T2N— Blacklock’s Reporter (@mindingottawa) August 13, 2025
A November 10, 2017 board meeting revealed the team’s over-reliance on external due diligence and urged directors to prepare for scrutiny. It never turned a profit, leaving taxpayers responsible for losses, which it refused to disclose, citing restrictions.
FinDev fast-tracked M-Kopa’s approval from October 3, 2017, to board agreement on November 10, relying on existing due diligence. Interest was confirmed by December 8, and payment occurred on February 26, 2018.
