THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
Zvilo, a working capital lender to businesses in the EU, Türkiye, Africa, and the Middle East, has made a strategic appointment with Peter Maila joining the business. Peter will spearhead Zvilo’s African expansion as CEO of Zvilo Africa and serve on executive committees at Zvilo global level.
Maila joins Zvilo from FMO, the Netherlands-based entrepreneurial development bank where he was Co-Chief Investment Officer covering its private equity and emerging markets team.
This is the second senior hire to go full time at Zvilo in recent months, with Maila joining Admir Imami who became full-time CEO in March this year. Zvilo has grown beyond original business plan, they decided to leave their full-time roles at BII and FMO respectively to dedicate their time in growing Zvilo globally.
Maila brings 30-years of finance and investment experience to Zvilo, where he worked for African and international banks, where he has been instrumental in investments worth over US$2 billion in Africa and South Asia over the last 15 years in FMCG, Infrastructure (incl. renewable energy), Real Estate and TMT (incl. FinTech) using both debt, mezzanine and equity instruments.
Imami and Maila worked together at BII since 2017, as Imami built BII trade finance business with commitments over $2bn. Since inception of Zvilo by Imami, Maila has also invested his personal wealth in Zvilo.
Admir Imami, CEO of Zvilo commented: “We are thrilled to welcome Peter Maila to the Zvilo team as our CEO of Zvilo Africa. He will bring exceptional experience and depth of expertise in in investing and building a book of business, both from an African perspective but also from risk, regulatory and governance perspectives. His appointment will dramatically strengthen the leadership team by adding deep strategic insight, which will be pivotal in driving growth in the African continent, attracting impactful partners, maximising value and helping reduce the African 120bn trade gap.”
Zvilo services local and cross-border trade finance needs of entire supply chains, ensuring businesses have the working capital they need, when they need it, for sustainable long-term growth.
Peter Maila added: “I am thrilled to join Zvilo at such an exciting time, as Zvilo seek to strengthen its market footprint into Africa and help drive its expansion across the continent. The senior team at Zvilo – led by my old colleague Admir Imami – is determined to go for growth, which is why we have both dedicated ourselves to the business.
“The company has ambitious plans to help reduce the 2.5 trillion global trade gap, of which $120bn is in Africa. I am keen to partner with Admir and bring further innovation to reduce the trade gap in Africa first and thereafter across the globe. I’m looking forward to adding my experience to the team and making Zvilo a market leader in providing working capital for the many businesses in Africa and beyond, who need the liquidity to finance for input or trade with their intra-Africa partners and the globe.”
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About Zvilo
Zvilo was established to offer working capital to underserved SMEs and corporates in emerging markets aiding in local, regional, and global expansion. Zvilo aims to meet borrower needs, deliver impressive investor returns, and reduce the global trade finance gap through its trade finance solutions.
