Sanari Capital has announced a R475m (c.$28m) first close on its Sanari 3S Growth Fund, receiving commitments from leading institutional investors, including the 27Four Black Business Growth Fund, RisCura (on behalf of various clients), and the National Fund for Municipal Workers.

Rory Ord, Head of Private Markets at 27four, said: “We are excited to back Sanari. The team’s focus on addressing social and economic challenges through growth investments is closely aligned with our objectives of generating strong returns for our investors and broader social impact within South Africa. We believe we have supported the right partner to achieve this.”

The fund is targeting between R1.2bn to R1.7bn (c.$70-100m) for the final close.

Samantha Pokroy, CEO of Sanari, said: “We are delighted to hit this milestone that recognises Sanari’s purpose-led approach, built on experience and our particular brand of inventive, disciplined investing that attracted significant commercial capital to the fund.”

“We appreciate our investors’ conviction and support for our approach to growth-stage PE. We are excited to see pension funds stepping up to support the real economy and growth companies to achieve combined social and financial returns.”

The private equity firm focuses on investments in growth companies emanating from Africa (mainly from South Africa) with regional and global scalability and exposure.

Sanari 3SG will invest in established and growing companies in industries that benefit from Sanari’s thematic focus areas and capitalise on its specialisation of investing in founder-run, owner-managed and family-owned businesses.

Named for Sanari’s proprietary framework for building businesses that are Sustainable, Scalable and Saleable (3S), the fund is the manager’s second but the first targeting institutional investors.

The fund has already deployed over 30% of its first close committed capital, with two investments warehoused before closing and a third investment in a fintech services provider to be announced shortly.

Edulife Group is the largest independent school group in South Africa’s Free State province, now embarking on a national expansion.

Edulife is an example of an African solution for one of our continent’s most significant challenges: bringing accessible, affordable, relevant education to students across income levels on a sustainable and profitable basis, combining exciting growth prospects with rewarding impact.

Taking Africa to the world, award-winning LightWare LiDAR is a South African developer and manufacturer of micro LiDAR systems (remote sensing technology) for drones, robots, autonomous vehicles, IoT, and smart cities on a global platform with a halo client base.

Moushmi Patel, Executive Director at Sanari, said: “Sanari brings a unique experience set focused on unlocking digital and human potential for successful investment in today’s local and global context. The fund invests between R50m and R200m(c.$3-$12 million) in medium-sized and mid-market businesses, in either a single tranche or a series of capital investments, signalling our emphasis on supporting companies as they grow.”

Sanari also has a significant pipeline of investment opportunities in healthcare, agri-business, education, services, food and technology.

Sihle Gumede, Executive Director at Sanari, added: “We see substantial opportunity through our investment themes to back the businesses that counter economic headwinds. Our investees provide solutions for a more connected and digital world, with investments in technology, IoT, data and services. In addition, as the world becomes more socially conscious, we’re ready to meet the growing demand for education, healthcare, food security and green solutions.”

Sanari Capital is majority women- and black- led and owned.

The capital invested by the fund qualifies as 100% black ownership in underlying portfolio companies. Importantly, the fund also meets the criteria for the 2X Challenge, which calls on DFIs and private sector investors to mobilise capital to support women’s participation in economic development and leadership on a global platform.

Doing good whilst doing well, the fund delivers positive social and environmental impacts aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals and drives the highest standards of ESG.

Ofentse Pelle, Executive Director at Sanari, said: “We invest in companies that share our commitment to creating meaningful employment, contributing to inclusive economic growth without harming the environment and communities in the process. We live our values daily, and our diverse team offers a competitive advantage in a changing world where we must be relevant to win.”