Knife Capital is an independent venture capital investment manager headquartered in Cape Town with an office in London. Founded in 2010, the firm backs innovation-driven, B2B technology companies that show strong traction and credible paths to global scale. Its model combines capital, networks, and operational know-how to accelerate international expansion once product–market fit is proven in a beachhead market.
Firm Overview
The firm manages a consortium of funds, including KNF Ventures and its successor vehicle, as well as a $50 million growth vehicle commonly referred to as Fund III. Public materials indicate a compact team of roughly 2 to 10 employees supported by seasoned partners and functional specialists. Knife Capital positions itself as stage-agnostic within growth equity, with disciplined entry points and capacity for follow-on.
Investment Focus
Knife Capital targets high-growth B2B companies across enterprise software, hardware and deep tech, healthcare, edtech, and fintech. The filter is practical and outcomes-oriented, favoring defensible IP, measurable productivity gains, and revenue expansion for enterprise customers. The firm is explicit about backing category builders that can convert South African traction into cross-border revenue.
Geographic Mandate
The primary focus is South Africa, with selective reach across Sub-Saharan Africa when mandate and execution conditions align. Fund III carries a pan-African mandate while maintaining a strong center of gravity in South Africa. The firm expects a material local presence and in-country capital deployment when investing out of its South African vehicles.
Ticket Size and Stages
Typical initial checks start around $600,000 for Series A through KNF Ventures, scaling to roughly $8 million from the expansion pool in Fund III. All funds under management can participate in follow-on rounds to support momentum and defend ownership. The approach is to size capital to fit execution risk, then add capacity as milestones convert to enterprise value.
Portfolio Highlights
Knife Capital’s portfolio includes DataProphet, Snapplify, InQuba, and Kandua, each aligned with the firm’s enterprise value thesis. These companies sell into businesses, embed defensible technology, and target markets where adoption delivers visible ROI. Notable outcomes include the sale of Fundamo to Visa and orderTalk to Uber Eats, signaling the firm’s ability to navigate to exits.
Leadership and Team
The partnership features co-founders Keet van Zyl and Eben van Heerden, joined by partners Catherine Young and Davey Gant. The broader team spans finance, legal, and risk, with roles that emphasize portfolio support and governance. This structure is lean by design, trading scale for speed, alignment, and hands-on engagement.
Recent Activity
Knife Capital’s recent cycle underscores steady deal flow and exit discipline. Ticketmaster acquired Quicket, a Knife Capital portfolio company, as part of its Africa expansion, validating market fit and buyer appetite. Simera Sense closed a €13.5 million round led by NewSpace Capital with Knife Capital participation, while the firm also announced a $50 million growth fund to target Series B opportunities.
Investment Process
Prospective companies enter through a formal application that captures mandate fit, traction, and data required for diligence. The team prioritizes accuracy and completeness to accelerate decision cycles and quickly qualify opportunities. If a fit emerges, the firm engages founders in targeted sessions that focus on growth levers, governance, and expansion readiness.
Knife Capital operates with a tight strategy, concentrated geography, and clear line-of-sight to enterprise buyers, which is where defensibility and exit routes converge. The firm’s portfolio and recent exits show a consistent bias toward real adoption, scalable economics, and credible acquirers. With dry powder across multiple vehicles and a practical operating stance, Knife Capital is positioned to keep turning South African traction into cross-border outcomes.