Part 15 of 15 · The toolkit
Part 15: Final Checklist, Glossary, FAQ and Directory
The last quality gate before you submit, the vocabulary you will be expected to know in the meeting, and the questions South African entrepreneurs ask most often.
Chapter 64The final submission checklist
Document integrity
- Every number in the narrative matches the financial model exactly
- The balance sheet balances in every period and the check is visible
- Cash flow closing balance equals balance sheet cash in every period
- DSCR is above 1.25x in every year of the proposed facility
- Cash break-even is stated, not only accounting break-even
- Three scenarios are present, with a written management response to the downside
- Page numbers, version number and date appear on every page
- The document is delivered as PDF; the model is delivered as live Excel
Content completeness
- The executive summary states the amount, instrument, term and use of funds
- The use-of-funds table totals exactly the amount requested
- Owner contribution is stated and can be verified in a bank account
- Every capital item has three dated quotes attached
- Every licence is listed with its current status, not just its name
- The risk register includes the risk the funder is most likely to raise
- Capacity at full utilisation exceeds year-three forecast volume
- The weighted pipeline reconciles to year-one revenue, or the gap is explained
- Customer concentration is disclosed with a mitigation
- Prior failures, judgments or adverse history are disclosed on your terms
Compliance pack
- SARS tax compliance status pin, valid today
- CIPC registration and annual returns current
- B-BBEE certificate or affidavit current
- Twelve months of bank statements, all accounts
- Certified IDs and CVs for all directors
- Personal statement of assets and liabilities for each surety
- Signed contracts, orders and letters of intent
- Lease or offer to lease; zoning confirmation
- Insurance schedule
The final read
- Someone outside your industry has read it and can explain your business back to you
- You can answer, without notes, why gross margin changes between any two years
- You know your DSCR, break-even, CAC and cash conversion cycle from memory
- You have decided what you will do if you are offered half the amount requested
- You have a named contact at the funder, not a generic address
Chapter 65Glossary
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| B-BBEE | Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment. Scorecard-based framework; your level affects procurement access and eligibility for several funds |
| CAC | Customer acquisition cost — total sales and marketing spend divided by new customers won |
| CIDB | Construction Industry Development Board. Grading determines the size of public contract you may tender for |
| CIPC | Companies and Intellectual Property Commission — company registration and annual returns |
| Cession | Transfer of a right (typically to debtors or contract proceeds) to a lender as security |
| Covenant | A condition in a loan agreement, e.g. maintaining DSCR above 1.25x. Breach can trigger default |
| DSCR | Debt service coverage ratio — cash available for debt service divided by total debt service |
| DFI | Development finance institution, e.g. IDC, DBSA, Land Bank, NEF |
| EBITDA | Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation — a proxy for operating cash generation |
| EME / QSE | Exempted Micro Enterprise / Qualifying Small Enterprise — B-BBEE size categories with simplified requirements |
| ESD | Enterprise and Supplier Development — corporate B-BBEE spend on developing black-owned suppliers |
| IRR | Internal rate of return — the discount rate at which a project’s NPV equals zero |
| LTV | Lifetime value of a customer (in credit contexts, loan-to-value — check which is meant) |
| Moratorium | A period during which capital repayments are suspended and only interest is paid |
| NPV | Net present value — the present value of future cash flows less the initial investment |
| POPIA | Protection of Personal Information Act — governs how you collect, store and use personal data |
| PPA | Power purchase agreement — the offtake contract underpinning an energy project |
| Retention | In construction, a percentage of each payment withheld by the client until practical completion |
| SAFE / convertible note | Instruments that defer valuation to a later round; common in early-stage equity |
| SEDFA | Small Enterprise Development Finance Agency — the merged SEFA, SEDA and CBDA entity |
| Suretyship | A personal undertaking to repay the company’s debt if the company does not |
| TAM / SAM / SOM | Total addressable, serviceable addressable and serviceable obtainable market |
| WACC | Weighted average cost of capital — the blended required return on debt and equity |
| Working capital | Cash tied up in the operating cycle: inventory plus debtors less creditors |
Chapter 66Frequently asked questions
How long should a South African business plan be?
Twenty-five to forty pages of narrative plus appendices for a debt application; twenty to thirty pages plus a separate model for an equity raise. Grant programmes often prescribe their own length and format — follow theirs exactly, even where you disagree with it.
How much does a professional business plan cost?
In the South African market, roughly R8,000–R25,000 for a straightforward SME plan, R25,000–R75,000 for a full plan with a proper three-statement model, and considerably more for project finance or transaction documents. Be cautious of anyone quoting under R5,000 — that price point buys a template with your name inserted, which funders recognise immediately.
Can I get funding with a bad credit record?
Commercial banks, generally no, until it is cleared. Development funders and some ESD programmes will consider applications where the adverse record is explained, historical, and settled. Obtain your own credit report first — you are entitled to a free annual report from the bureaus — and deal with judgments before you apply rather than after you are declined.
How long does funding actually take?
Bank scored lending on existing accounts: days. Bank SME term lending: four to twelve weeks. SEDFA: three weeks to three months depending on size. NEF and IDC: three to nine months. dtic incentives: three to twelve months, claimed in arrears. Equity: three to nine months from first meeting to money in the account. Plan your cash on the pessimistic end of every one of these ranges.
Do I need to be registered for VAT?
Compulsory registration applies once taxable supplies exceed the prescribed annual threshold; voluntary registration is possible below it. VAT registration helps when selling to VAT-registered businesses and hurts margin when selling to consumers. Whichever applies, state clearly in your plan whether your figures are VAT-inclusive or exclusive — and be consistent throughout.
Should I give away equity or take on debt?
Debt is cheaper if you can service it, because you keep the upside. Equity is appropriate where the business cannot service debt yet, the risk is genuinely high, or you need the investor’s expertise and network as much as the money. Most South African SMEs are better served by debt with a guarantee than by selling equity cheaply at an early stage. This is general information, not financial advice — take advice specific to your circumstances before deciding.
What if I am offered less than I asked for?
Decide beforehand what a reduced facility would buy and whether the project still works at that scale. Being able to answer immediately — “at R1.9m we do phase one only, which reaches break-even by month eleven” — often converts a partial offer into a full one, because it demonstrates that the plan was built in phases rather than as a single indivisible ask.
Do I need audited financial statements?
Most SMEs require an independent review rather than a full audit under the Companies Act, depending on their public interest score. Larger facilities and most DFIs will expect audited or independently reviewed statements. Whatever your obligation, having signed statements prepared by a registered professional materially strengthens any application.
Chapter 67Directory of primary sources
| Purpose | Source |
|---|---|
| Company registration and returns | cipc.co.za |
| Tax compliance status | sars.gov.za (eFiling) |
| Small enterprise finance and support | sedfa.org.za |
| Industrial finance | idc.co.za |
| Transformation finance | nefcorp.co.za |
| Incentive programmes | thedtic.gov.za |
| Youth funding | nyda.gov.za |
| Infrastructure finance | dbsa.org |
| Agricultural finance | landbank.co.za |
| National statistics | statssa.gov.za |
| Interest rates and macro data | resbank.co.za |
| Budget and fiscal data | treasury.gov.za |
| Construction grading | cidb.org.za |
| Security industry regulation | psira.co.za |
| Data protection | inforegulator.org.za |
A business plan does not create a fundable business. It reveals whether you have one — and that is precisely why the exercise is worth doing honestly.
Closing note
