Questions to answer before you commit
How can a family office invest in Tanzania without a local team?
Give your independent local verifier a written scope and a direct reporting line to your decision owner. Keep legal, financial and technical conclusions with qualified specialists and reconcile their findings in one decision record.
Is a trusted introduction enough to proceed with an investment?
An introduction can justify a first review, but not a shorter verification process. Confirm the counterparty, asset, permissions and site conditions before escalating spending or releasing capital.
Protect the principal’s decision process
You may receive an opportunity through someone you trust. That can justify a first look, but you still need to check the deal itself. Set a small number of gates: authority to discuss, evidence to spend on diligence, conditions for a term sheet and proof required before funding.
Record conflicts of interest and referral incentives. The person bringing an opportunity and the person testing its claims should not be the same unchecked source.
Use a local line of sight without losing control
Make sure your local representative reports to your decision owner, independently of the promoter. Give that representative a written scope, permission to speak to relevant parties, a method for preserving evidence and a clear escalation rule when a material claim cannot be verified.
Local visibility complements, rather than replaces, specialist advisers. Counsel interprets legal rights, engineers and geologists test technical propositions, and tax and financial advisers assess their respective questions.
Match the checks to the sector
In mining, separate a current mineral right from asset quality and site usability. In energy, separate a resource and a proposed plant from licence, grid and offtake reality. In infrastructure, separate political support or introductions from formal authority, procurement, land and delivery conditions.
The same decision record should show which facts are independently confirmed and which assumptions remain in the model. You and your principal should be able to see what changes the decision without searching through the entire data room.
Continue visibility after the transaction
Pre-close diligence is only one point in a long investment. Agree on milestone evidence, site reporting, exception escalation and the rights to inspect progress before funds are released. You need enough evidence to tell whether a missed milestone is a manageable delay or a change in the underlying investment risk.
Primary sources and limits
Use these sources to start your checks. They do not confirm the status of the deal in front of you, and records and rules can change. Get current official confirmation and the relevant specialist advice before you rely on a claim.
Make the next decision with evidence.
Bring us the opportunity and the questions you cannot yet answer. We can discuss the local checks you need, alongside the legal, financial, environmental and technical work for your specialist advisers.
Discuss an Opportunity