A Caribbean-led asset management company is set to become the first black-owned contact lens manufacturer in the world.

The company, Black Pearl Global Investments (BPGI), entered the contact lens business with the acquistion of Florida-based contact lens manufacturer Hydrogel Vision Corporation (HVC). As a result of the acquisition, HVC will be renamed Black Pearl Vision, becoming the only black-owned and female-led contact lens manufacturer in the world. The deal is expected to close by mid-September.

“Our ticket sizes are in the range of US$10,000 to US$750,000 and we are excited to support the Caribbean market,” Dr Shante Williams, president and CEO of BPGI, affirmed.

The acquisition comes as Black Pearl Global Investments enters the Caribbean with its first regional business launched in Jamaica having a focus on reducing health disparities across the Caribbean.

“Jamaica was a natural fit for our Caribbean headquarters; one of [the] co-founders, Dr Carl Smart, was born and raised here. Establishing our first Caribbean office here was deeply personal and it will act as an anchor for all of our activities throughout the region,” Williams explained.

“We are here to support the health sector with a mix of solutions for both debt and equity capital partnership. BPGI’s expertise is in supporting entrepreneurs grow their businesses — not only with capital deployment, but with access to network and knowledge necessary to advance an organisation.”

Black Pearl Global Investments is an asset management firm that invests in companies innovating in the health determinants space, primarily focused on those located in North America, Africa, and the Caribbean. The firm also globally deploys funding in the form of venture capital, private equity, and private lending. Its mission is to equitably accelerate the deployment of funding to the companies, entrepreneurs and innovators who need it most and to where it can make the most impact. Global Black Pearl Limited (GBPL) is an entity registered in Jamaica by the general partners of BPGI, which leads the deployment of capital within the Caribbean.

BPGI will invest in and acquire early- and growth-stage companies transforming health care using innovation.

“The investment strategy focuses primarily on Caribbean companies with a global potential. We are seeking to accelerate the Caribbean as an innovator in the health-care sector, so we want to partner with visionary founders that are redefining how health care is provided and consumed whilst delivering better outcomes for all,” said Daniel Smart, director of the Caribbean at BPGI.

The Black Pearl Global Investments team brings investment, medical, technology, and health expertise to the table: “In 2020, digital health start-ups in the USA attracted a record US$14 billion of investment capital, in the largest funding year on record. Jamaica is rich with brilliant innovators and yet funding is only starting to see traction,” Williams expressed.

“BPGI’s mission is to change that by helping to magnify Jamaica’s best and brightest. We have developed a robust pipeline of opportunities and hope to be considered the preferred capital partner for health entrepreneurs.”