The Simah Group partners with Invequity

The Simah Group, a provider of insurance, risk, and advisory services to large commercial and corporate businesses, has partnered with Invequity, a Black women-owned and operated private equity fund management company, whose primary focus is to raise growth capital to invest in high-impact businesses that are directly black-owned. The deal was concluded on 16 February 2023 after careful consideration by the shareholders. 

The Simah Group was formed in May 2022 through a partnership between Gavin Searle (formerly Bay Union Corporate Risks), Steyn McDowall (formerly Indwe Risk Services), Peter Olyott (Indwe Broker Holdings) and African Rainbow Capital Financial Services Investments (ARC). ARC facilitated the initial larger transaction between the groups, with part of the arrangement being to also assist with B-BBEE facilitation. At the end of 2022, ARC expressed an interest to divest, having facilitated the transaction. This led Simah to investigate various opportunities in the B-BBEE space, which provided the group with an opportunity to partner with Invequity through the Dash Private Equity Fund. 

“Simah is a proudly South African business and as such, took the decision at inception that we would pursue our goals of making our organisation truly representative of this, in terms of our shareholding and our future employee profile,” said Gavin Searle, Managing Director of Simah Risk Holdings. “Partnering with Invequity was an easy decision, as it not only allows us to achieve our ambitious business goals, but it also enables us to invest in the growth and development of our employees, whilst delivering real risk management expertise to our clients.”

Invequity CEO, Boitumelo Ditsepu CA(SA), added, “This partnership represents a crucial step towards making a significant impact on people’s lives and driving real change. Invequity is committed to supporting The Simah Group in being an inclusive, diverse, and proudly South African business, while maximising their investments in transformational black businesses to move the needle where it matters. We look forward to a long and successful partnership with The Simah Group.”

With over R1bn in premium volume and a significant geographical presence in South Africa, Simah has the capability to keep delivering to its core offering of care, attention and focus to its selected client base. In addition, the partnership with ESRG (Eikos Simah Risk Group), a London-based consultancy, allows Simah to provide advice and capacity to larger risks who are struggling to find solutions in the local South African market.