About the fund
Secha Capital Fund I is the debut vehicle of Secha Capital, a Johannesburg-based Black, female-founded growth capital firm founded in 2017 by Dr. Nombuso Nkambule, Brendan Mullen, and Rushil Vallabh. The fund was deliberately conceived as a pilot to test and prove a new model for private equity in Africa — the "Operator-Investor" approach — which addresses the two core pain points of African SMEs beyond capital: management talent and market access. Rather than simply deploying equity, Secha seconds skilled professionals into portfolio companies for a year to execute its SAIL framework (Strategize, Assess, Implement, Learn), working alongside founders on sales, operations, and strategy. Fund I invested in ten companies across South Africa, with a particular focus on women-founded and Black-founded businesses in traditional, often overlooked "boring" sectors — FMCG, agribusiness, food and nutrition, and consumer goods — that are making the tech-enabled and green economy transition. The fund collectively employed 500 people across its portfolio and generated exits that validated the model's replicability for financial and social returns, paving the way for the firm's second fund. Fund I was backed by Caleo Capital as the key early investment partner. The fund is listed on the ImpactAssets 50 and is recognized for over-delivering on its initial target financial returns.
