South Africa’s small businesses often struggle to grow not because there is no work available, but because getting access to funding at the right time remains difficult. For many entrepreneurs, the challenge begins after winning a contract when they need money to buy materials, pay workers or deliver services long before clients settle invoices.
This is where alternative funding provider Sourcefin believes it is making a difference.
The company recently surpassed R3 billion (approximately US$184 million) in funding deals for small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs), a milestone that highlights how new funding models can help businesses grow, create jobs and participate more actively in the economy.
Rather than relying only on traditional lending methods, Sourcefin focuses on purchase order funding and invoice funding linked to confirmed work. The model helps businesses access funding when they already have work secured but lack the cash flow needed to complete it.
The milestone comes at a time when many small businesses continue to struggle to access traditional finance. According to FinFind’s latest SMME finance insights, more than 85% of funding applications come from businesses with annual turnover below R1 million, while 57.5% of these businesses have no collateral. At the same time, businesses in this category account for 80.5% of full-time jobs created by SMMEs, showing how critical small firms are to employment despite facing major barriers to finance.
Sourcefin says this gap between economic importance and access to capital is exactly what its funding model is designed to address.
“What traditional finance often reads as risk on paper can, in context, be real execution opportunity,” said Joshua Kadish, CEO and co-founder of Sourcefin.
According to Kadish, many small businesses do not struggle because demand is missing. Instead, they face delayed payments, difficult procurement systems and underwriting processes that do not reflect how many South African businesses actually operate.
“Our experience has shown that many SMMEs do not fail because demand is missing,” Kadish said. “They struggle because payment terms are long, procurement is fragmented, and conventional underwriting does not reflect how South African small businesses actually operate.”
He added that reaching R3 billion in funded deals proves there are more practical ways to support growth by backing businesses based on their ability to deliver real work.
Beyond Funding: Helping Small Businesses Deliver and Grow
Sourcefin’s model goes beyond simply providing money. Over the past five years, the company has combined funding with access to a vetted supplier network and practical support to help entrepreneurs move from procurement to successful delivery.
The business has also introduced TenderCentral, a platform created to help SMMEs find verified tender opportunities in one place. The initiative responds to another challenge many entrepreneurs face, which is limited access to opportunities due to difficult or expensive tender systems.
Sourcefin argues that lack of visibility and lack of funding often work together to slow business growth. By helping entrepreneurs access both opportunities and working capital, the company says small firms can scale more sustainably.
Real examples from across South Africa show how the model is working in practice.
In the Northern Cape, Sourcefin supported a supplier delivering specialised treated plywood into a high-security defence environment. While the entrepreneur had previously managed smaller contracts, the larger order was at risk due to limited working capital. Funding support allowed the business to complete the contract successfully and grow to a new level.
In Gauteng, another SMME supplying labour, protective clothing and uniforms to a major manufacturing environment faced ongoing cash-flow pressure because payroll and procurement costs arrived before customer payments. Sourcefin provided R1.2 million in funding, helping the business continue operations without disrupting a key supply chain.
In another case, a waste-management company received more than R11 million through a mix of invoice and purchase order funding. This enabled the business to continue transporting waste from informal settlements to landfill sites while financing future operations.
These cases, according to Sourcefin, show that many SMMEs are capable businesses that simply need support to manage timing and cash flow challenges rather than rescue funding.
Building a Stronger Small Business Economy
Sourcefin says partnerships are also becoming an important part of helping more businesses access suitable funding. Referrals from a major bank are already connecting entrepreneurs to alternative funding where traditional routes may not work.
For Kadish, the R3 billion milestone reflects more than financial numbers.
“This milestone is significant because it reflects real businesses delivering real work in the economy,” he said. “Behind every funded deal is a supplier paying staff, meeting an order, protecting a client relationship or creating room to grow.”
He added that South Africa’s small-business future will depend not only on access to capital, but also on funding systems and partnerships that understand business realities on the ground.
Sourcefin’s growth has also earned recognition within the industry. The company was named National Funder of the Year by the NSBC in 2025 and was included in the Top 20 of the News24 and Statista Growth Champions 2026 ranking as well as the Financial Times’ ranking of Africa’s fastest-growing companies.
