COMPLETE FARMER LANDS FRESH IFC FUNDING

Ghanaian agri-tech Complete Farmer has secured a $2.4 million convertible loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank, to expand financing for smallholder farmers.

Full Breakdown of the Deal
The financing is in partnership with the Business Investment Financing Track (BIFT) of the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP). BIFT is a $75 million blended-finance window designed to de-risk investment into early-stage agrifood businesses.

The total package is $3.06 million:
$2.4 million convertible loan - to scale input financing and agronomy services
$480,000 advisory support + $180,000 grant = $660,000 - to strengthen internal systems, software, and data infrastructure

It was announced on September 17, 2026, alongside a separate $50 million risk facility for Absa Bank Ghana. That facility will allow Absa to lend up to $200 million to Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs) to buy traceable cocoa from over 139,000 cocoa farmers.

What Complete Farmer Does
Founded in 2017 by Desmond Koney, Complete Farmer operates in Ghana and Togo across eight regions, with eight fulfilment centres.

Its model
CF Grower: Gives farmers precision farming tools, agronomy advice, and access to quality seeds and fertilizer.
CF Buyer: Lets global buyers like Aldi and Lidl source quality-certified produce directly, with full transparency from order to delivery.

The company currently works with over 72,000 farmers, supported by 350+ field agents who handle aggregation, grading, quality control and export logistics. It has helped cultivate over 30,000 acres.

What the Money is For
CEO Desmond Koney said: "For us, this partnership is about making finance work better for farmers. Too many farmers with the capacity to grow commercially still struggle to access the financing they need to do so."

The loan will scale its input-financing model. Complete Farmer uses farm data to assess risk and facilitate credit and inputs on loan before planting season.

IFC Division Director for West Africa, Nathalie Kouassi Akon, said: "These partnerships address different gaps across the value chain, from financing cocoa purchases to helping farmers access inputs, services, finance, and buyers."

Why It Matters and Future Plans
The goal is to reach 240,000 farmers by 2030.

What is a convertible loan? It is a loan that can later turn into company shares. So IFC lends money now, and can later choose to become a part-owner instead of just being repaid.

This deal builds on previous raises: a $10.4 million pre-Series A in 2023 led by The Venture Platform and Acumen, and a $2.5 million EU AgriFI facility in 2025. According to US SEC filings on June 11, 2026, its parent company CompleteFarmer Technologies Inc. has also raised $9.2 million of a $12 million equity target in the US. 6353