iSON Xperiences (formerly iSON BPO Limited), an outsourcing and customer experience delivery partner operating in 14 countries in Africa and in India has raised US$ 51 million structured loan and equity investment from Dubai’s Gulf Capital and AfricInvest, a pan-African mid-cap-focused private equity firm.
Gulf Credit Opportunities Fund II and AfricInvest Fund III provided a total debt and equity commitment of US$ 25.5 million each to be used for growth and working capital, as well as for acquiring shares from a minority investor.
According to Ramesh Awtaney, Founder and Chairman of iSON Group, said: “We are confident that with this fresh investment, we are now on an accelerated trajectory to be the largest Customer Experience Partner company in emerging markets. We remain committed to rapid innovation and enabling business transformations in emerging markets, so as to ultimately deliver on our vision.”
The deal marks the sixth investment for Gulf Capital from its US$ 251 million second debt fund and is the second for the company in Sub-Saharan Africa. With this commitment in iSON, Gulf Credit Opportunities Fund II is now 52% invested. It is the 10th investment for the US$273m AfricInvest fund III that is now more than 80% deployed.
iSON Xperiences is the largest customer experience partner / delivery partner in Sub-Saharan Africa, accounting for an estimated 75% of the market, excluding South Africa. The company’s operations serve 425 million telecom end-users through 27 call centres in 13 Sub-Saharan countries, South Africa and India. Today iSON Xperiences is a valued partner and consultant for clients looking to remain ahead of the customer experience management curve, in a dynamic global environment.
Founded in 2010, iSON Xperiences (formerly iSON BPO Limited) launched its operations in six countries in Africa including Kenya, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger and Nigeria and in India with a focus on offering call centre services to the telecommunication sector. The company rapidly expanded and transformed its business to offer related outsourced experience services and technology solutions for the banking and insurance (BFSI), retail, travel and hospitality, media and entertainment, aviation, and e-commerce sectors in addition to the telecommunication industry.
“At iSON, as we continue to transform ourselves to provide our clients solutions for complete Digital Customer Experience Management covering both processes and technology, we are excited to welcome our new investment partners Gulf Capital and Africinvest. They bring with them deep industry and geography knowledge,” concluded Awtaney.
