Kalon Venture Partners
Venture capitalJohannesburg · Pre-Seed–Growth · 12 people tracked
Investment thesis
Kalon Venture Partners backs disruptive technology startups in South Africa and across Africa. The firm invests in post-revenue companies (not necessarily post-profit) led by entrepreneurs addressing African problems that have the potential to scale into global markets. Kalon emphasizes 'smart capital' and 'smart returns,' aiming to generate both financial and non-financial value for the businesses it supports. Its team combines roughly 200 years of collective experience across venture capital, technology, and related industries, positioning it as a prominent tech investor in the region.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.
Team · 12 people
from the firm's website & curated
What they invest in
from 8 of 11 portfolio companiesSaaS ×5AI & Machine Learning ×3Enterprise Software ×2Fintech ×2IoT ×2Marketing Tech ×2AdTech ×1Advanced Manufacturing ×1
HQs:South Africa×4
Investments · 11 tracked
founders shown can be your intro pathBy year:2023 · 12017 · 12 dated
Sendmarc provides DMARC, email authentication, and breach detection solutions to protect businesses against phishing, spoofing, domain impersonation, and email-based attacks.
CybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareSaaSJohannesburg, ZA
Sam Hutchinson(Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer)Keith Thompson(Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer)Sacha Matulovich(Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer)inRichard Rose(Executive Officer)
BoardAniko Szigetvari(Director)in
Board seatClive Butkow· per SEC Form D
Co-investors4Di CapitalAtlantica VenturesCapria VenturesMozilla Ventures
Johannesburg
CRAIG COLIN ROY MCLEOD(Executive Officer, Director)
Board seatClive Butkow· per SEC Form D · $250K raise · filed Apr 2017
FCB.ai designs, deploys, and operates AI agents across customer journeys, taking operational responsibility for deployment and ongoing optimization with accountability for business outcomes.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareSaaS
Co-investorsSaviu Ventures
Flow operates an AI-powered audience marketplace that turns first-party retailer and platform data into performance-ready audience segments, which advertisers can browse, plan and activate directly to their ad accounts.
AdTechAI & Machine LearningMarketing Tech
GoMetro provides Bridge, a fleet management platform that consolidates telematics data from multiple providers into a single real-time system for vehicle visibility, reporting, and analytics.
IoTLogistics & Supply ChainSaaS
Mobiz is an SMS and MMS marketing platform that lets businesses send personalized text messages with MMS text overlays and build personalized landing pages using a drag-and-drop tool.
Marketing TechRetail TechSaaS
Co-investorsFuturegrowth Asset Management
Ozow provides an open banking payment platform that lets South African businesses accept payments, issue refunds, and make payouts through instant bank-to-bank transfers, without requiring a card.
Fintech
Co-investorsGreycroftEndeavor Catalyst
Talk360 is a mobile calling app and payment infrastructure platform focused on Africa.
B2B MarketplacesFintechSaaSSouth Africa, ZA
DeanTom van der Geerin
Co-investors4Di CapitalE4E AfricaFirst CircleHAVAIC
visionAI is a Visual Manufacturing Execution System (MES) that uses a factory's existing CCTV and IP cameras with computer vision to automate OEE monitoring and visual root cause analysis, showing video proof of downtime, quality defects, and operator efficiency.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningIoT
Rows marked “SEC filing” are inferred from directors named on the company's SEC Form D — public regulatory data, not a portfolio list published by the firm.
Portfolio news
latest coverage across their companiesOzow · disruptafrica.com · Aug 5, 2026
Talk360 · disruptafrica.com · Feb 12, 2026
Frequently asked questions
- How many investments has Kalon Venture Partners made?
- Kalon Venture Partners has 10 tracked investments.
- What stage does Kalon Venture Partners invest at?
- Kalon Venture Partners invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Growth stages.
- What sectors does Kalon Venture Partners focus on?
- Kalon Venture Partners focuses on AI & Machine Learning, Deep Tech, Enterprise Software, Fintech, InsurTech, Media & Entertainment, Retail Tech, SaaS, Sector Agnostic.
- Where is Kalon Venture Partners located?
- Kalon Venture Partners is headquartered in Johannesburg, ZA.
- Does Kalon Venture Partners lead rounds?
- Kalon Venture Partners typically participates in rounds rather than leading them.
- Who does Kalon Venture Partners co-invest with?
- Kalon Venture Partners most often shares deals with 4Di Capital, Atlantica Ventures, Capria Ventures, among 9 tracked co-investors.
Media · Podcasts & interviews
featuring the teamClive Butkow (Kalon Venture Partners): The Journey of an Acclaimed Venture Capitalist
Startup Club ZA · Clive Butkow
How entrepreneurs can survive and thrive in the pandemic with Clive Butkow of Kalon Venture Partners
The COBRA Initiative · Clive Butkow
MBS087 - Clive Butkow, Venture Capitilist & CEO Kalon Venture Partners - Matt Brown Show | Acast
Clive Butkow · shows.acast.com
Similar investors
Khosla Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies focused on technology, mobile, and clean energy sectors, including biotechnology applications. The firm provides capital and strategic support to entrepreneurs developing breakthrough technologies across multiple markets.
Highline Beta is a venture studio and venture capital firm that co-creates new ventures with corporate partners and co-invests alongside founders. It helps enterprises design, launch, and run corporate venture studios and build new ventures from idea to launch.
Archetype Ventures is a venture capital firm focused on B2B seed and early-stage investments. Since its founding in 2013 it has managed roughly 24 billion yen across four funds and backed around 60 companies.
Viola is an Israeli technology investment group managing over $7 billion in assets, operating multiple independent investment arms spanning venture capital, growth equity, credit, and fintech.
AVP is an independent global investment platform focused on high-growth technology companies, ranging from deep-tech to tech-enabled businesses, across Europe and North America.