She learned finance on Wall Street. Now she is changing how Africa gets funded.

Grace Legodi, a finance professional who spent years working on Wall Street, has returned to South Africa to change how the country's businesses are funded. Born in a township shaped by the legacy of apartheid, Legodi grew up with a strong emphasis on education instilled by her parents, a teacher and a social worker. She pursued her passion for finance at the University of Cape Town and later worked in mergers and acquisitions at Goldman Sachs, a global investment giant, in both New York and Johannesburg.

Now, Legodi has founded Keyo Ventures, an investment firm focused on early-stage businesses in the green economy, infrastructure, and technology across the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Keyo's mission is to provide capital to startups that traditional financial institutions often overlook due to their lack of scale, track record, collateral, or predictability.

Unlike conventional venture capital firms that favor asset-light businesses with proven market traction, Keyo takes a unique approach by combining alternative financing with technology that tracks operational and financial performance. This allows them to provide financing to businesses that are still too early-stage for conventional funding sources.

Keyo's investment approach is data-driven and focuses on businesses working in areas such as electric mobility, water, waste management, and sustainable agriculture. By offering financing beyond the traditional equity or debt instruments, Keyo aims to provide a more comprehensive solution to the funding gap faced by these businesses.

One of Keyo's clients is Zimi Charge, an electric-vehicle charging infrastructure company. Keyo provided capital for the infrastructure rollout while a development finance institution supplied quasi-equity to support staffing and working capital. This complementary financing approach allows Zimi Charge to grow while minimizing the risk associated with debt financing.

Grace Legodi's work with Keyo Ventures represents a significant shift in how Africa's businesses are funded, filling a crucial gap in the financial ecosystem that has long been overlooked by conventional investment institutions.