South Africa’s transformation journey is not just a moral imperative — it is a strategic advantage. The evolving economy presents significant opportunities for emerging entrepreneurs, established businesses, and both local and international corporations.
At Identity Partners, we are committed to integrating Black women into the economic mainstream through meaningful equity participation in established businesses. True empowerment extends beyond ownership; it requires active leadership at Board, Executive, and Supervisory levels, ensuring that Black women contribute their expertise and drive sustainable growth.
Equally, access to procurement opportunities within corporate supply chains is essential for fostering long-term economic inclusion. Our role is to facilitate business opportunities — for our investors, for our partners, and for BEE businesses — empowering them to expand their influence, unlock new markets, and shape the future of South Africa’s economy. We believe in transformation that creates lasting impact.
As a black women-owned investment firm, we strategically invest in businesses that drive economic progress while ensuring black women are active participants at every level — ownership, leadership, and enterprise development. Our work spans critical sectors such as infrastructure, transport, health sciences, water testing and finance, where we bring capital, expertise, and governance to unlock sustainable growth.
Our ability to navigate complex global corporate structures, secure high-impact deals, and embed meaningful change makes us the B-BBEE partner of choice. Whether through strategic equity participation, policy advisory, or enterprise development, we drive real, measurable impact in South Africa’s economic future.
Identity Partners Group Structure (100% BEE; 88% Black women)
We partner with established businesses, multinationals, and high-growth companies, acting as their trusted B-BBEE partner.
We negotiate deals, structure financing, and support post-investment business development. Through board participation and strategic guidance, we enhance operational effectiveness, and regulatory compliance, and create long-term value for all stakeholders.
Our investments go beyond financial returns. They are catalysts for broader economic inclusion.
By securing board representation, facilitating gender parity and procurement opportunities, we ensure real empowerment within our portfolio companies and the industries in which they operate.
We’re women-led, centered, and inclusive.
Before founding Identity Partners, she was Executive Director at WDB Investment Holdings, leading several of their large acquisitions and was a VP at Deutsche Bank having worked in their Johannesburg, London and Tokyo offices prior to that.
Women’s economic empowerment, financial inclusion, gender parity and democratizing access have been specific areas of interest throughout her career.
Max has 24 years of experience in international and local corporate finance and investment banking. Prior to joining Identity Partners in 2012, Max was a deal-maker in the Leverage and Acquisition Finance team at Standard Bank for the mid-corporate and business segment, and prior to that a corporate finance transactor at Deutsche Bank.
Max is a non-executive director and shareholder representative on various Identity Partners’ investment companies’ boards and executive committees.
Talelani has over 8 years of experience in external audit, financial accounting and advisory services, financial management and investment management.
Prior to joining Identity Partners in 2019, Talelani was an Assistant Manager at EY in the Financial Accounting and Advisory Services department.
Talelani also serves a compliance function at Identity Partners.
Founded in 2019, the Identity Partners Investment Trust is a bursary program that transforms dividends into dreams. Through this bursary program, we invest in the next generation of black female leaders – funding tuition and essential expenses to open doors that might otherwise remain closed for black female youth.
To date, we have supported twelve exceptional young women in pursuing degrees in Law, Science, Engineering, Film & Animation, Sign Language, and Finance. Their success is the legacy and their impact is the return on investment. Because when we invest in women, and enable their empowerment, we invest in the future of South Africa.
