The SME-focused financial services platform empowers entrepreneurs to accept both in-person and online payments.

iKhokha, a South African fintech company, has distributed more than $105 million (R2 billion) in working capital to its small and medium-sized firm (SME) customer base in collaboration with Retail Capital, which is now a division of TymeBank.

The SME-focused financial services platform empowers entrepreneurs to accept both in-person and online payments.

The fintech also provides access to working capital and offers affordable access to business management tools, including daily sales analytics and the ability to set sales targets and track sales performance.

Also, following iKhokha's substantial expansion over the last five years, some fundamental shareholding changes have been implemented. This includes the recent decision by iKhokha shareholders to spin the business off of the Adumo group.

Commenting on the company’s performance, iKhokha CEO and co-founder Matt Putman, says: “In a tough South African economic climate with gloomy daily headlines, to have been able to inject $105 million (R2bn) worth of working capital into the small business sector in South Africa is a really special achievement and milestone for us collectively.”

He adds: “Most importantly, to have built a sustainable funding model in this space, speaks to the resilience of the small business sector in our country despite all the macro negativity. Our research shows that 80% of these businesses would struggle to access loans through traditional banks and therefore we are stimulating the part of the market that needs it most.”

Putman believes the underserved self-employed sector of South Africa plays such a vital role in stimulating the economy and helping to bridge the unemployment gap.

“Their continued growth is fundamental if we want to see our economy grow. We will continue to help entrepreneurs and SMEs to believe in better business by investing in our SME focused financial services platform to expose more local SMEs to the digital economy,” adds Putman.

Miguel Da Silva, managing executive of Retail Capital, comments: “The accomplishment not only fuels economic growth but also highlights the value of strong partnerships to provide vital support to entrepreneurs navigating funding challenges in a tough economic landscape.”

According to Nic Smalle, MD of iKhokha shareholder Apis Partners, the fintech has become one of the market leaders in the South African SME payments space. He believes that the business is better positioned for future potential as a standalone business.

Dean Sparrow, CEO of Crossfin Holdings who has been invested in iKhokha since its inception in 2012, agrees: “Crossfin, Apis and IFC continue to back the vision of Matt Putman and his team based on their impressive track record.”