TGIC mobilizes over $17m (N6.8b) for projects in 3 years , plans to empower 10,000 youths in 5 years
*Youths urged to join for Financial Security
The Green Investment Club (TGIC) said it has successfully mobilised over $17 million (N6.8bn) for multiple projects that has created jobs and contributed to economic growth in Nigeria and sourced direct investment opportunities in the capital market, agro-processing, consumer lending, logistics, fin-tech and real estate development sectors in Nigeria, UK and USA for its teeming members.
The Club vision in five years is to help at least 10,000 individuals get financially educated and provide investment advisory services to them to enhance their confident level in making investment decisions and achieving financial security.
TGIC provides financial education within a community and support them with practical tools to get the financial results they need. They teach financial education through online courses, webinars, events and weekly emails. Their monthly webinar with industry experts give members of the club an opportunity to learn practical investment lessons and their annual hang-out event provide a way for members of the club to meet and network in a fun atmosphere.
These disclosures were made by Tomie Balogun, the founder of the Club who is also the Chief Executive Officer of Vestract, a financial education and technology company, during the formal unveiling of the TGIC Report yesterday in Lagos.
While giving the background of how the club started, their achievements, and their plans going forward she disclosed that TGIC key statistics showed that in 2017, they had 154 members which cut across six countries with investment worth $227,000 (N100 million); 405 members across eight countries with $589,000 (N215 million) investment in 2018.
In 2019, membership rose to 592 in 11 countries while investment jumped to $1.9 million (N681 million); in 2020 members were 1500 spreading across 25 countries with $10 million (N4 billion) investment and today membership of the club has risen to 1,700 in 26 countries with investment worth over $17 million (N6.8 billion).
She said TGIC started with 35 members and today it has grown to over 1,700 members in 26 countries of the world and enjoined the youths to join the club for enhanced financial status.
“35 people signed up and we started the journey which has culminated in the Green Investment Club (TGIC) today. The TGIC was established as a community-based investment club to democratize investment opportunities for millennials in Africa and African millennials in Diaspora. We set out with the audacious goal to educate more millennials on how to make investment decisions and build diversified investment opportunities. Looking back over past years, the team has been able to achieve this,” she said.
Continuing, “The Green Investment Club started as a 3-month membership programme focused on investment education. It was a successful pilot. When the first pilot ended, we had over 100 people on the waitlist who couldn’t wait to join the movement. We took on new members in mid-2018.
“Our target audience is the Nigerian youth who is trying to figure out how to save, budget and invest in a constantly changing economic environment. They want to achieve financial security and tick off things on their bucket list; however they are typically excluded by investment institutions due to the size of income. They want financial security but have no clue how to achieve this.”
Tomie said members’ savings in financial institutions will be mobilized towards investing in small businesses in the economy which she said comprised 80% of businesses in Nigeria, noting that “when these businesses are supported, they will provide employment to people and reduce the level of poverty in the land.”
On investment she said, “As we started to source for investment opportunities, we noticed a trend in the investment space. Nigeria was evolving as an emerging destination for tech innovation and this innovation was implemented in the agricultural sector. Start-up companies like FarmCrowdy and Thrive Agric had created digital platforms to connect investors with opportunities to fund short-term agriculture projects.
“This investment opportunities offered practical use of income investing and impact investing strategies as members could invest in agriculture project that offered good return on investment and also impacted the economy.
She said the TGIC’s Stock Market Club currently has over 250 members who invest actively in the Nigerian and US Stock market based on the quality of research, adding that so far, at least 50 members have benefited from real estate flexible payment plans as an easier way into real estate in Lagos.
TGIC founder posited that amid COVID-19 significant changes were evident in members’ portfolios as contained in Asset Allocation Report for the first quarter of 2021, pointing out that members have raised their allocation to Private Equity from zero to 13.6% and increased their investment in public equities (the stock market) to 28%.
The panelists at the event themed “The Money Moves of Today’s Young Nigerian” anchored by Chief Executive Officer, Talknation, Joyce Daniels, included capital and financial market professionals such as Mr. Peter Atuma, Chairman, Princeps Holdings (Credit Wallet), Mr. Osazuwa Osayi, Co-founder, Famforte Limited, and Mrs. Oladunmi Olawuyi, Chief Operating Officer, Apel Asset Limited.
TGIC strategic partners include among others, Coronation Securities, AXA Mansard, bamboo, Mixta Nigeria, Farmforte, Lanwey, ONEfi, LSETF, Credit Wallet, and Apel Asset Limited.
