FNB Agrees Annual $90,000 Support For Young Tech Businesses In SA

  Busayo Entrepreneurs, Financing

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VENTURES AFRICA – South Africa’s First National Bank (FNB) has agreed to invest R1 million ($90,303) annually into small technology businesses through Silicon Cape, a local online tech hub, for the next three years.
Silicon Cape is a volunteer-driven non-profit organisation that aims to improve the ecosystem for tech businesses. It is also one of the largest entrepreneurial networks in Africa with over 8,500 registered members.
The agreement between the FNB and Silicon Cape will help to fund and provide an enabling environment for small businesses in South Africa, especially those in the Western Cape.
FNB approved the funding support three
months after Silicon Cape approached it for sponsorship. “The speed with which they responded to the sponsorship is really a testament to the space and the value they see in us,” Silicon Cape’s Alexander Fraser said.
According to Fraser, the endorsement was an “immense vote of confidence” for tech-entrepreneurs and every startup business everywhere in South Africa.
“FNB’s backing will certainly bolster our efforts to build a better ecosystem for tech-entrepreneurs. This investment and long term commitment will enable Silicon Cape to scale and build additional value in our ecosystem,” he posits.
The agreement comes almost two months after the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) and small enterprise finance agency (sefa) expanded their reach into Western Cape to provide fund for youth-owned businesses in the province with the aim of creating jobs.