Despite the challenging economic conditions facing the South African small and medium enterprise (SME) sector, the appetite for finance and growth amongst these businesses still seems to be healthy and robust, Nazeem Martin, Managing Director of BUSINESS/PARTNERS, has said.

Martin said that it is a “positive indication for the industry going forward”, adding that company’s financial results for the year ended March 31, 2015 highlight this positive trend in the marketplace.

The company’s 2014/2015 financial results revealed that, in total, an impressive 380 business investments valued at R 1,117.0m were approved during the financial year.

According to Martin this is an 8.8 % year-on-year increase in investment activity, up from R1,082.5m in the previous financial year.

“This is a significant achievement in the wake of challenging economic conditions, uncertain power supply and sluggish consumer demand, and reinforces the appetite for funding and risk amongst South African SMEs,” he said.

Of the 380 investments approved, 147 investments to the value of R403.9m were approved for black entrepreneurs, an increase of 22.7% from the R329.1m approved in 2014.

During the 2014/2015 financial year, 160 investments amounting to R357m were approved for female entrepreneurs, and more than 17,200 employment opportunities were facilitated through the company’s investment activities.

“These employment statistics underline the crucial role that small businesses play in creating jobs and boosting economic growth, and is exactly the reason why the public and private sector need to continually support local small businesses,” said Martin.

Martin said that SMEs in the manufacturing sector attracted more investment from the group than any other during the financial year, with more than R257.5m in new investments approved.

“During a year in which SMEs were experiencing tough trading conditions, the strong financial results and volume of new business concluded exceeded the company’s expectations,” he said.

“During the 2014/2015 financial year 290 BUSINESS/PARTNERS mentors were available to provide valuable mentorship and consulting services to our clients, which resulted in many SMEs surviving and also flourishing in tough trading conditions. We extended this support service beyond our client base by establishing the Entrepreneurs Growth Centre in 2014, which is a free mentorship and support service available to all entrepreneurs.”

During the 2014/2015 financial year total income increased from R470.1m in the prior year to R513.2m for the year under review, which is a direct result of double digit growth in all revenue lines excluding interest.

Net profit for the group amounted to R182.7m, 18% higher than the previous financial year.

Martin said that they are confident of meeting the investment targets for the 2015/2016 financial year, set at more than R1.1 bn.

“We launched two funds in the last financial year, a Manufacturing Fund and an Education SME Fund, and we expect these funds to provide traction to the investment efforts in the current financial year. Despite the challenges facing the South African economy, we expect that entrepreneurs will continue to work hard and seek growth opportunities,” he said.