Business Funding and Support

No enterprise can thrive without adequate funding. Whether the enterprise is small, medium or large, having enough money to start or keep the business running is inevitable. This goes to tell you that having a viable business idea is never all there is to start a venture. However, while you may not necessarily be the sole funder of your business, part of what makes you a proactive entrepreneur is your ability to raise the required capital for your startup. And to make things easier for new startups, various business funding opportunities are available to many people.

There are different channels through which you can access the required capital for your business.

1. Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) funding for small business. Find out more about DTI business funding.

2. The National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) business funding. Find out more about NYDA business funding.

3. Bank loans

4. Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SEFA). Find out more about SEFA.

5. Funding solutions from Vodacom, known as Vodalend. Find out more about Vodalend.

Learn More:

Access to funding is key to SME's surviving in South Africa

IOL 9 September 2021

At the onset of the pandemic, the government launched a number of relief funds with the intention to support SMEs with access to capital during the period when economic activity was negatively affected by Covid-19. But with more applications for relief than funding available, or slow approvals of applications, many businesses have been left in a precarious financial position.

Strategic thinking needed to access real-time funding for SMEs

Moneyweb 20 August 2021 There exists a common myth in the small- and medium-sized entity (SME) community globally that only struggling businesses take on debt.

Vodacom supports SMEs as part of its SDGs

Political Analysis South Africa 18 August 2021

The Vodacom Group has shared its sustainability report for the 2021 financial year, as well as its contributions to the promotion of the economic growth of SMEs through funding.

Why managing cash flow is important for SMEs during turbulent times

Moneyweb 18 August 2021, by Amanda Visser

Lulalend offers real-time solutions to small businesses that include access to funding, trade credit solutions and cash flow management tools.

JP Morgan banks R340m on SA’s SMEs

Moneyweb 18 August 2021, by Palesa Mofokeng

International investment banking giant JP Morgan together with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic) on Tuesday announced an investment programme that will see R340 million being deployed to address critical funding gaps for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) mainly in SA’s industrial and ‘green economy’ sectors.

Neglected small business segment gets much-deserved attention

Moneyweb 16 August 2021, by Amanda Visser

In South Africa the SME funding gap is estimated at more than $20 billion (R294.5 billion), according to a report by the International Finance Corporation, a division of the World Bank.

SMERocketFuel.com delivers Growth Intelligence for SMEs

Social TV 6 August 2021

SMERocketFuel.com, founded by serial-entrepreneur Matt Brown, is set to help SMEs overcome the current uncertain business environment with the launch of a new Growth Intelligence™ platform designed to help SMEs access new markets, funding and business support networks.

Fintech start-up raises R15m to lower barriers to SME funding

ITWeb 19 July 2021

Local fintech start-up Akiba Digital has raised $1.1 million (R15 million) in pre-seed funding, which will be used to connect small businesses to lenders.

How South African SMEs can survive and thrive post COVID-19

McKinsey 10 July 2021, by By Shakeel Kalidas, Nomfanelo Magwentshu.

Here’s how the public and private sector can provide the right support to enable SME growth in South Africa, now and beyond the crisis.

Fintech makes investment into FundingHub to boost SME funding in SA

startupAFRICA 23 June 2021

Finch Technologies, a Cape-based fintech focused on creating better fintech ecosystems, has made a further significant investment to become the majority shareholder in South Africa’s leading business finance marketplace, FundingHub, following a previous investment in 2019.

A credit lifeline: How banks can serve SMEs in South Africa better

McKinsey 11 December 2020                                                                

By Luís Cunha, David Entwisle, Uzayr Jeenah, and Fona Williams

Small and medium-size enterprises are crucial to the economy in South Africa, and optimal support is needed to ensure their recovery and growth into the next normal.

For more support, you can also consult an expert by calling or requesting a call back.