Private Equity

The Swiss firm's impact investment arm has committed an undisclosed amount of capital to Shared-X, which works with smallholders in emerging markets.

The $130bn Canadian pension fund is optimistic that recent structural reforms in these two countries will unleash new sources of investment.

The Connecticut system of pension funds, which allocates 9.2% of its $30bn in assets to private equity, named Laurie Martin deputy CIO to replace Deborah Spalding, who became CIO in July 2015.

The firm has been increased its exposure to European timberland through a property in France, having snapped up several Finnish forests from UPM last year.

The firm, which raised $1.3bn for its Africa funds last year, is betting on the increasing use of urea-based fertilisers around the world and Indorama's expansion into African, US and European markets.

Fanisi Capital is targeting $75-$100m for its second fund, which will invest across Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, in sectors including agribusiness.

New Hope Group, which could invest A$1bn in Australian agribusiness over the next three years, is opening the first Sino-Australian free trade zone near Shanghai.

Bruce Zimmerman announced his resignation on Monday with no immediate successor.

Farmland investment firm Homestead Capital fell $52m short of its target for its first fund last year, but has already surpassed its initial $350m target for Fund II.

Following a N$300m commitment from the Government Institutions Pensions Fund Namibia, the fund expects to raise a further N$150m from local pension funds.