Q-Lana Investment Advisors (QLIA)
Long-term capital for SMEs in developing markets. We design the funds and we run them.
About QLIA
QLIA is an investment advisory firm registered in Rwanda. Our team has spent decades in banking, risk management and impact investing. We help investors, fund managers and financial institutions design, structure and run funds that close the financing gap for small and medium-sized businesses in Africa and other developing regions.
Vision
To be the advisory firm investors turn to first for sustainable investment in Africa and other developing regions.
Mission
To give investors access to well-structured, high-impact investments in developing countries. We take each fund from concept to execution: design, structuring, launch and day-to-day management.
Why QLIA
- Decades of investment and risk management experience across our management team.
- Hands-on track record structuring and running funds and investment vehicles around the world.
- Developing markets are where we work every day, and impact is at the core of how we invest.
- Strategies built from our own field experience, designed to create real impact through SMEs and financial institutions.
- Our own digital platform, Q-Lana, runs sourcing, investment, operations and monitoring, connected with service providers across several regions.
Our Business Areas
One team across the full life of a fund, from the first concept note to day-to-day portfolio management.
Strategy
Business models that deliver impact and sustainable returns.
- Fund conceptualization: concept notes, business plans and fundraising strategy.
- Fund structuring: investment vehicles designed around your objectives.
- Financial modeling: quantitative projections to test and track performance.
- Impact frameworks: methods, tools and advice to measure and manage impact.
Operations
Processes that are efficient, compliant and ready to scale.
- Operational guidelines: policies and procedures for end-to-end fund management and compliance.
- Risk and valuation: assessment, rating, monitoring, collections and early warning, with valuation under IFRS 9 or GAAP.
- Digital platform: the Q-Lana platform for asset management, fully implemented.
- Accounting and processing: accounting, invoicing and reconciliation handled for you.
Investments
Access to sound SME investment opportunities through our lending platform.
- SME Lending Platform: we close the funding gap by connecting investors with the banks and funds that originate SME loans. Investors, lenders and borrowers all gain.
- Investment due diligence: a clear view of risk and return before you commit.
- Private debt advisory: practical guidance on debt investments.
- Private equity advisory: support for investments in privately held companies.
- Asset restructuring: reorganizing and recovering assets and portfolios in default.
Services
Advisory for investors, fund managers and financial institutions.
- SME Lending Platform: we close the funding gap by connecting investors with the banks and funds that originate SME loans. Investors, lenders and borrowers all gain.
- Investment due diligence: a clear view of risk and return before you commit.
- Private debt advisory: practical guidance on debt investments.
- Private equity advisory: support for investments in privately held companies.
- Asset restructuring: reorganizing and recovering assets and portfolios in default.
SME Lending Fund
SMEs in developing markets struggle to get long-term finance. Local banks know these businesses well, but capital rules and short-term funding hold them back. The SME Lending Fund addresses both.
- Local banks and lenders originate and manage the loans. They know the SME market best.
- The Fund takes a share of the credit risk. That helps the partner banks in two ways:
- It eases pressure on their regulatory capital.
- It brings long-term funding where it is scarce.
- Domestic and international institutional investors join through a transparent risk-sharing structure, with direct exposure to SME credit via structured loan participations.
- Risk is shared through silent participations or club deals, so investors and banks stay aligned on monitoring and recovery.
- The result is a platform that scales: local banking know-how combined with institutional capital.
Meet Our Team
Christian Ruehmer
CEO/CIO
LinkedIn- Christian has more than 30 years in investment management, risk management and impact finance. At multinational financial institutions he served as Deputy Treasurer and as Managing Director of a structured investment unit, covering portfolio management, risk management and workout. In impact investing he has been Chief Investment Officer and Head of Risk Management.
- Since 2001 he has advised more than 120 financial institutions, investees and international organizations in developing countries on risk management, investments, and corporate and SME lending.
Jukka Heikkila
CRO
LinkedIn- Jukka has more than three decades in financial services. He started in trading and treasury, then advised financial institutions in emerging markets, including assignments in Ethiopia and Chad.
- He has served as Head of Risk Management and Compliance at an impact fund manager in Luxembourg, balancing risk with social impact and holding the fund to high standards of compliance and ethics.
Benjamin Nyakeriga
Senior Investment Professional
LinkedIn- Benjamin has more than 20 years in private equity, venture capital, strategy consulting and banking across Africa. He has led M&A, debt restructurings and capital raises of more than USD 500 million, for early-stage ventures and large corporates alike. His focus is impact investing, green finance and capital markets development.
- He holds an MBA from Strathmore Business School and IESE, is a CPA-K, and is a CFA candidate.
Contact Us
Questions about QLIA, our services or the SME Lending Fund? Send us a note and we will get back to you.