SA SME Fund
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersJohannesburg, South Africa
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
SA SME Fund firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- SA SME Fund
- Legal name
- SA SME Fund
- Website
- https://sasmefund.co.za
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
SA SME Fund industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital Fund Management
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Managed Account / SMA Multi-Manager Platforms (FSANAGAL)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- SME Term Loans & Growth Capital (FSAKAGAB)
Keywords
Where SA SME Fund is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Johannesburg
- HQ country
- South Africa
- HQ region
- Africa
Offices1 record
Markets served
SA SME Fund business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Fund Management and Capital Deployment: The SA SME Fund operates as a fund-of-funds, allocating capital to VC and growth equity fund managers. It generates returns through successful portfolio companies managed by its partner fund managers. Revenue is derived from capital appreciation and returns on investments made through its fund vehicles (SA SME Fund I, VC Fund of Funds, High Impact Seed Fund of Funds, and Crisis Partnership Fund).
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
SA SME Fund product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The SA SME Fund is a South African venture capital fund-of-funds that does not invest directly in SMEs. Instead, it allocates capital to reputable venture capital, growth equity, private equity, and debt fund managers who then deploy capital into promising start-ups and high-growth South African SMEs. It manages multiple investment vehicles totalling approximately R3.6 billion across fund vehicles, providing catalytic institutional capital to grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Product overview
SA SME Fund is a venture capital company operating as a fund-of-funds that does not make direct investments into SMEs. Instead, it empowers specialist fund managers through multiple investment vehicles: SA SME Fund I (R1.4 billion foundational vehicle backing 16 fund managers), the Crisis Partnership Fund (R300 million debt fund for COVID-19 relief), the Venture Capital Fund of Funds (R1.3 billion later-stage VC fund-of-funds), and the High Impact Seed Fund of Funds (R600 million seed-stage fund-of-funds). The company also supports ecosystem development through the Black Investment Professionals Associate Programme, Fund Manager Development Programmes in partnership with SAVCA, and accelerator partnerships with Grindstone and Endeavor. Additionally, it provides Industry Kits including IP Strategy tools and Venture Capital Model Documents to standardize the fundraising ecosystem.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- SA SME Fund I Foundational investment vehicle with R1.4 billion backing 16 fund managers across venture capital, private equity, and debt to deploy capital into high-growth South African businesses at scale.
- Crisis Partnership Fund R300 million targeted debt fund deployed through seven non-bank financial intermediaries to provide critical financing to South African SMEs, particularly township-based businesses, during acute economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Venture Capital Fund of Funds R1.3 billion fund-of-funds, one of South Africa's largest dedicated VC fund-of-funds, backing high-performing venture capital managers to accelerate innovation and grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem with a well-defined transformation mandate.
- High Impact Seed Fund of Funds (HISFoF) R600 million seed-stage fund-of-funds created to deepen investment in South Africa's innovation economy, backing early-stage technology managers and bridging the gap between research and commercial scale, including climate-tech focused funds.
Companies that use SA SME Fund
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
SA SME Fund technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
SA SME Fund partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Endeavor South AfricacoreStrategic partner in the Local Scale Up programme. SA SME Fund sponsors and supports Endeavor's Scale-Up Programme for high-growth entrepreneurs. SA SME Fund Chair Adrian Gore is the founding Chairperson of Endeavor South Africa.
- Grindstone AcceleratorcoreSA SME Fund supported the Grindstone Accelerator to help high-growth South African start-ups refine business models, accelerate traction, and become investor-ready.
- SAVCA (Southern African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association)corePartnered with SAVCA to run two Fund Manager Development Programmes aimed at strengthening and transforming South Africa's early-stage investment landscape.
- Business for South Africa (B4SA)coreCo-spearheaded the #PayIn30 initiative to ensure SMEs are paid within 30 days, with over 50 large companies formally committing.
Scale indicators13 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
SA SME Fund competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- 4Di Capital: Early-stage South African venture capital manager and existing SA SME Fund portfolio manager. Directly comparable as a tech-focused VC operating in the same SA market that SA SME Fund channels capital into.
- Novastar Ventures: Pan-African (East Africa-led) venture capital fund-of-funds and direct investor backing early- and growth-stage SMEs. Most structurally comparable peer to SA SME Fund's fund-of-funds model focused on African emerging markets.
- Knife Capital: South African growth-equity venture capital firm and existing SA SME Fund portfolio manager. Directly comparable as a South African VC investing in scalable SMEs, and useful as an underlying vehicle through which SA SME Fund deploys capital.
- TLcom Capital: Pan-African venture capital firm investing in early- to growth-stage tech startups across Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa. Comparable as an institutional African VC investor operating with similar LP base and transformation/impact mandate.
- GroFin: Pan-African SME development financier providing debt and capacity-building to small businesses across multiple African markets. Comparable to SA SME Fund's Crisis Partnership Fund debt mandate serving township SMMEs through non-bank intermediaries.
- Savannah Fund: Pan-African seed-stage fund-of-funds that aggregates capital from DFIs and impact investors to back African tech startups via local fund managers. Closest peer in terms of fund-of-funds structure targeting African early-stage ecosystems.
Broad incumbents
- International Finance Corporation (IFC): World Bank Group's private-sector arm and one of the largest DFI fund-of-funds investors globally. Comparable as a large-scale institutional investor into emerging-market VC and PE fund managers, including in Africa.
- British International Investment (BII): UK development finance institution actively investing in African venture and growth equity via fund managers. Comparable as a large DFI backer of African VC fund-of-funds vehicles and climate-tech mandates.
- Partech Africa: Pan-African venture capital fund backed by major DFIs and institutional investors, investing in African tech startups. Comparable as an institutional African VC investor serving a similar LP base to SA SME Fund's emerging institutional VC investor pool.
- FMO (Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank): Dutch DFI that invests through fund managers in emerging markets, including dedicated African venture and SME debt funds. Highly comparable blended-finance FoF model with development mandate similar to SA SME Fund's transformation goals.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat7 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
SA SME Fund social profiles
Digital presenceSA SME Fund financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
SA SME Fund leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
SA SME Fund funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
SA SME Fund M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments4 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about SA SME Fund
What does SA SME Fund do?
The SA SME Fund is a South African venture capital fund-of-funds that does not invest directly in SMEs. Instead, it allocates capital to reputable venture capital, growth equity, private equity, and debt fund managers who then deploy capital into promising start-ups and high-growth South African SMEs. It manages multiple investment vehicles totalling approximately R3.6 billion across fund vehicles, providing catalytic institutional capital to grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Is SA SME Fund a public or private company?
SA SME Fund is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was SA SME Fund founded?
SA SME Fund was founded in 2016.
Where is SA SME Fund based?
SA SME Fund is headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, in the Africa region.
How does SA SME Fund make money?
One revenue line is on record: fund Management and Capital Deployment.
Who are SA SME Fund's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are 4Di Capital, Novastar Ventures, Knife Capital, TLcom Capital, GroFin and Savannah Fund. Broad incumbents are International Finance Corporation (IFC), British International Investment (BII), Partech Africa and FMO (Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank).
Does SA SME Fund have an API?
No public API is recorded for SA SME Fund.
What industry is SA SME Fund in?
SA SME Fund's product category is Venture Capital Fund Management. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAGAL, Managed Account / SMA Multi-Manager Platforms, with a secondary code of FSAKAGAB, SME Term Loans & Growth Capital. Its NAICS code is 523940 and its SIC code is 6282.