Marchenko Partners has advised the Western NIS Enterprise Fund on a loan to Walnut House, a bakery based in Lviv, Ukraine.
Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
The loan was provided through the Impact Investing Program established in 2016 by WNISEF, Kredobank, and Oschadbank, with the help from Marchenko Partners (as reported by CEE Legal Matters on November 25, 2019).
Walnut House, which was founded in 2012, offers bakery, catering, and lunch delivery services. Marchenko Partners describes it as a “social enterprise that transfers 40% of its income to the support of the social projects of Walnut House Fund, including a center of integral care for women in crisis." The firm reported that, "the bakery’s mission is to overcome poverty, using the tools of social business.”
WNISEF is a regional fund which primarily focuses on investing in small and medium-sized companies. Since its inception, WNISEF’s cumulative investments have totaled over USD 186 million in 130 companies, employing around 26,000 people.
Marchenko Partners’ team included Partner Roman Shulyar, Associate Bogdan Burlaka, and Junior Associate Oleksandr Pozniakov.