Standard Bank helps SMEs unlock growth opportunities at 2025 SAFT Summit

Standard Bank’s headline sponsorship of the 2025 South African Future Trust (SAFT) Summit reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to unlocking opportunities for South African small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which remain central to the country’s economic transformation.

The summit, held in November at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, brought together more than 2,000 entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers and thought leaders, creating a powerful platform for knowledge exchange, collaboration and accelerated business growth.

Supporting SMEs at the SAFT Summit

Standard Bank’s support extended beyond sponsorship to meaningful on-the-ground enablement through its Enterprise and Supplier Development programme.

Twelve SMEs were fully sponsored to exhibit at the summit, gaining exposure to new markets and buyers. An additional four SMEs were brought in to provide essential legal, financial management and marketing advisory services to entrepreneurs throughout the event.

The bank also facilitated the attendance of 150 township-based entrepreneurs from Standard Bank Business and Commercial Banking’s Kasi SME National Pitch Challenge, ensuring that township businesses were represented, connected and exposed to ecosystem opportunities.

Launched earlier this year in collaboration with SAFT, the Kasi SME National Pitch Challenge is an countrywide initiative that identified and mentored township-based entrepreneurs with high-growth potential. It has already showcased how targeted support can help emerging businesses formalise, access markets and employ more people.

A partnership rooted in shared purpose

“For Standard Bank, our partnership with SAFT reflects our broader purpose of driving Africa’s growth. One of the ways we do this is through such partnerships that turn possibilities into opportunities for vibrant businesses that power the economy,” says Bill Blackie, CEO of Business and Commercial Banking at Standard Bank Group.

“The SAFT Summit was a celebration of that purpose in action, a moment to recognise the entrepreneurs whose ideas, courage and determination continue to move SA forward.”

The partnership between SAFT and Standard Bank was forged during the Covid-19 pandemic, when both organisations moved swiftly to support struggling businesses.

Together, they jointly provided R250m in interest-free loans to small, micro and medium enterprises during Covid, supporting 3,500 small businesses and ensuring that 22,000 employees continued to receive an income during lockdown.

“Our relationship with Standard Bank has been defined by a shared urgency and purpose to build a better future for SA.

“From standing with us during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, to headline sponsoring the SAFT Summit, Standard Bank has remained a steadfast partner in our mission to unlock opportunities for entrepreneurs, recognising that small businesses are the driving force behind the South African economy,” says Jonathan Oppenheimer, SAFT chair.

Honouring SMEs making an impact

The SAFT Summit concluded with the announcement of the 2025 SAFT Award winners:

Youth Entrepreneur: Buddy Learning Social Entrepreneur: Technovera PeleboxTech Entrepreneur: StokFella Innovative Idea Award: Technological Plumbing SolutionsOptimised Operating Model Impact Award: Assessment Toolbox

These businesses demonstrated vision, innovation and a strong ability to shift SA’s entrepreneurial landscape.

Standard Bank sponsored the Woman in Business Award, which was awarded to Welile Gumede, founder of Azowel Projects.

Gumede is a crop farmer from iLembe in KwaZulu-Natal who, after being unable to secure employment as a chemical engineer, identified a gap in the market and began tomato tunnel farming with no prior agricultural experience.

She received a prize package comprising R250,000 cash and a further R250,000 allocated towards working capital, assets and mentorship, which will support the expansion of her agribusiness operations.

Gumede’s work exemplifies the impact of women-led enterprises and the transformative impact that women entrepreneurs are having across our economy.

By turning neglected agricultural land into productive assets, she is building a sustainable business, contributing to food security as well as rural development.

The Big Pitch 2025, the summit’s flagship competition, awarded its grand prize to Parent Sense, a parenting and early childhood development technology platform that demonstrated exceptional scalability, market potential and societal impact.

Standard Bank Business and Commercial Banking continues to support enterprises across the continent through transactional banking, lending, payment solutions and enterprise and supplier development programmes, all designed to help businesses start, manage and grow sustainably.

This article was sponsored by Standard Bank.