South Africa’s first online rental marketplace.

Dec 31

Ekaya (2014—2018)

Ekaya was born from the broken rental market in South Africa. As co-founder, I designed and built the country’s first digital rental marketplace, introducing secure deposits, tenant verification, and digital payments. The venture raised R1.4m in funding, gained national visibility on Dragons’ Den SA, and was backed by respected investors. Ekaya’s approach was profiled in AIM Group and Ventureburn as a potential solution to the housing crisis, and eventually the company was acquired by Rental Connect. Beyond product innovation, Ekaya was my first experience raising capital and leading a team through the full arc of startup growth and exit.

Highlights

Co-founded SA’s first rental marketplace
Raised R1.4m; national TV exposure on Dragons’ Den SA
Acquired by Rental Connect

In the Press

AIM Group — Ekaya offers more than listings: https://aimgroup.com/2016/08/07/ekaya-offers-more-than-just-property-listings/
Ventureburn — Can Ekaya fix rentals? https://ventureburn.com/2014/06/the-rental-industry-is-broken-can-ekaya-fix-it/
Ventureburn — Ekaya raises R1.4m: https://ventureburn.com/2014/09/renting-startup-ekaya-raises-r1-4-million-launches-open-beta-in-cape-town/
Ventureburn — Dragons’ Den coverage: https://ventureburn.com/2014/11/dragons-den-sa-episode-9/

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