ESG principles

CEECAT Capital is a small investment company, comprised of 12 seasoned professionals with extensive experience investing in emerging markets. With primary offices in Istanbul, Bucharest, and Belgrade, we have been investing in Turkey and SE Europe since 2005 across a number of strategies including Private Equity and Private Credit. In 2021 we raised CEECAT Fund II, targeted at growth buyout investments with majority control or minority with strong control rights. Key themes of the fund are driven by core convergence of this region with the more developed markets of Western Europe. To date, the Fund has made investments across a number of sectors including packaging, grocery retail, IT services, deep tech, and building materials. The Fund targets small and medium cap companies as they transition from family ownership and we aim to build the platform for continued growth and development. The key foundations of this are good corporate governance, a focus on sustainable market practices, good corporate citizenship, and a strong sense of local community.

We believe that with control we are able to effect positive change in our communities through active management. Each of our investments must meet strict criteria – a willingness to effect change and an ability to execute this change. As well as standard financial, legal, and commercial due diligence, we conduct extensive diligence across our key ESG goals – climate impact, inclusivity, and social responsibility. We do not seek to judge the past but rather examine how our investments can make positive changes in each of these areas. For each investment, we identify critical areas of change needed, both immediate and over time, and we develop plans to implement the changes we seek to make. Finally, we seek to buy in from management through incentive programs specifically targeted at achieving specific ESG goals.

Barack Obama once said, “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the one’s we (have) been waiting for. We are the change that we seek”. CEECAT Capital operates in markets less advanced than many more developed economies in terms of its legislation or judicial control over ESG issues. We operate in economies and societies that have gone through dramatic evolutionary social change within the last 40 years. This is ongoing, and driven by younger generations we see a great willingness to effect meaningful and lasting change to improve society for future generations. Progress is fast and we believe that it is our responsibility to foster this change through our beliefs, the way we act, and the way we operate our companies. We want all our constituents to feel proud of what we can build together.

CEECAT Capital is a signatory to the Principles of Responsible Investment (PRI).

As advisors to institutional investors, we have a duty to act in the best long-term interests of our beneficiaries. In this fiduciary role, we believe that environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) issues can affect the performance of investment portfolios. We also recognise that applying these Principles may better align investors with broader objectives of society. Therefore, where consistent with our fiduciary responsibilities, we are implementing the following Principles:

• We will incorporate ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes.
• We will be active owners and incorporate ESG issues into our ownership policies and practices.
• We will seek appropriate disclosure on ESG issues by the entities in which our funds invest.
• We will promote acceptance and implementation of the Principles within the investment industry.
• We will work together to enhance our effectiveness in implementing the Principles.
• We will each report on our activities and progress towards implementing the Principles.