Knife Capital

Knife Capital is a venture capital investment manager based in Cape Town, South Africa, with offices in London and Jersey. The firm specializes in accelerating the international expansion of African innovation-driven businesses by leveraging knowledge, networks, and funding. They focus on high-growth B2B innovative technology companies with strong intellectual property and evident potential for global expansion. Knife Capital invests in innovation-driven SMEs that have a well-defined product, recurring revenues, and a clear governance process. They target companies at the seed, Series A, Series B, and growth equity stages, seeking businesses with proven traction, impressive management teams, high gross margins, a scalable business model, a large addressable market, and clear exit options. Their sector focus includes fintech, healthcare, edtech, AI, enterprise technology, hardware, deep tech, and software. Knife Capital manages multiple funds, including Knife Fund III, which has a pan-African mandate with a predominant focus on South African companies. Typical investments range from $600k for Series A to $8m for Knife Fund III expansion fund.

Knife's investment process starts with the Knife Application Form. Once the application has been completed, the investment team will review the opportunity and reach out to set up an introductory call if there is initial interest and a possible mandate fit.