Top 10 Biotechnology VC Funds & Investors in South Africa (May 2026)

Portfolio highlights

• Novel Farms — Novel Farms uses microbial fermentation to develop cruelty-free, inexpensive and tunable bioscaffolds for the production of cell-based meat products. Novel Farms mission is to craft the taste and texture of the gourmet meats and transform cell-based meat consumption into a sought-after culinary experience for the next generation of consciouseaters.
• Minus — A sustainable coffee alternative, combining the taste, look, and smell of coffee with a smaller footprint to ensure a brighter future for coffee and the planet.
• Unicorn Biotechnologies — Unicorn Biotechnologies is developing a fully automated manufacturing platform to enable cellular agriculture producers to seamlessly scale products from the lab bench to supermarket shelves. Our full stack platform combines hardware, software and analytics to completely automate cellular agriculture manufacturing, reducing costs and increasingproduct quality. By providing a clear path to scale cellular agriculture from grams to tons, we will improve human and planetary health and drive the transition to animal free agriculture.

Portfolio highlights

• Inseco — Inseco is an IT company that specializes in management solutions, ERP, CRM, GED, HR, and business solutions.
• SweepSouth — Book a home cleaning online from your mobile, tablet or computer. SweepSouth connects you with a cleaner in minutes. Cleaners are experienced, reliable, efficient and insured.
• Inseco — Sustainable insect protein producers, converting organic by-products into nutritious protein. This high in protein product is used in animal feed, pet food, crop production, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

Portfolio highlights

• Talk360 — Talk360 is an easy-to-use calling app that helps people make affordable international calls to any mobile and landline number. They believe that reliable communication and digital services must be affordable and accessible to everyone, regardless of someone's background. Especially people in emerging countries in Africa, who often need theseservices the most, do not always have the necessary banking possibilities. To bridge this distance, Talk360 will launch the world's first single checkout platform for Africa. This platform will combine all locally available payment methods and currencies across Africa, together with over 1.25 million cash points of sales, and will eventually be available to other companies as well. This means that 500 million Africans will be able to purchase digital services they never had access to before.
• SweepSouth — Book a home cleaning online from your mobile, tablet or computer. SweepSouth connects you with a cleaner in minutes. Cleaners are experienced, reliable, efficient and insured.
• Yebo Fresh — Powering South Africa's Township Economy.

Portfolio highlights

• Farmless — A farmless fermentation platform has the potential to create an entirely new food repertoire, producing proteins, carbohydrates, beneficial fats, vitamins, and minerals from the ground up," explained Oner. "We are creating a new interface between food and electricity by domesticating microbes chosen for their food properties and abilityto grow on renewable energy-based feedstocks.
• Daisy Lab — Daisy Lab pioneers precision fermentation technology in New Zealand
• Atlantic Fish Co — Developing sustainable, cultivated seafood using cellular agriculture

Portfolio highlights

• 3X4Genetics — The future of healthcare is personalized. Build a more successful practice and transform more lives using the power of DNA-driven health recommendations, through DNA & Genetic Testing!
• Lipidio Pharmaceuticals — Lipidio Pharmaceuticals is a healthcare company that focuses on advancing a molecule to treat diseases associated with excess body fat. It includes non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, Prader-Willi syndrome, and antipsychotic drug-induced weight gain. The company was founded in 2018 and headquartered in San Diego, California.
• SEngine Precision Medicine — The Search Engine For Identifying Personalized Cancer Treatments.

Portfolio highlights

• Talk360 — Talk360 is an easy-to-use calling app that helps people make affordable international calls to any mobile and landline number. They believe that reliable communication and digital services must be affordable and accessible to everyone, regardless of someone's background. Especially people in emerging countries in Africa, who often need theseservices the most, do not always have the necessary banking possibilities. To bridge this distance, Talk360 will launch the world's first single checkout platform for Africa. This platform will combine all locally available payment methods and currencies across Africa, together with over 1.25 million cash points of sales, and will eventually be available to other companies as well. This means that 500 million Africans will be able to purchase digital services they never had access to before.
• FinAccess — FinAccess is a banking software for microfinance organisations.
• Right Now Response — Your go-to for expert breakdown assistance. Our dedicated team ensures you're back on the road swiftly and safely. Contact us for reliable support today!

Portfolio highlights

• Voltpost — The lamppost electric vehicle charger.
• Earthodic — Earthodic is an Australian materials science company creating functional biobased coatings. Paperbarc by Earthodic is a biobased water-resistant coating for pulped or paper products. It has better water-resistance than wax coatings, more sustainable and circular than plastic coatings. Repulpable. Re
• Ocean Rainforest — Ocean Rainforest offer a collection of premium fully-traceable seaweed products, mostly for food and cosmetic producers.

Portfolio highlights

• BioCertica — BioCertica combines advanced genomics technology to interpret your DNA and provide recommendations to unlock a healthy lifestyle.

Portfolio highlights

• Loki Foods — We're producing sustainable, plant-based foods from the Arctic. Iceland’s first plant-based cod and seafood!
• THE PACK — Nutritionally complete vegan dog food. Grain-free & developed with food scientists & animal nutritionists, try our delicious vegan dog food now.
• Swedish Temptations — Swedish Temptations, founded in 2019 by CEO Pia Qvarnström, built a brand named Bärta for producing organic, vegan and fermented food. The ingredients include Swedish split peas.

Portfolio highlights

• The Index — The Index is a platform of cutting-edge technology used by clients in the fashion and retail industry to grow their companies and enhance their digital footprints
• De Novo Foodlabs — De Novo FoodlabsThe future of nutrients
• Smart Separations — Smart Separations is a limited company based in London UK that has patented an innovative microfiltration technology to produce ceramic filters with self-assembled controllable pores of uniform size in the range between <1 and 50µm. This tight pore size control and range availability will revolutionise the field of MF with a cost-effectiveproduct.It aims to be the world’s leader in MF and particle separations technology – filling the void gap that exists in the market nowadays.