R1-billion blended finance programme to transform real estate

In this interview with Chris Steyn, Alessandro Scalco of RMB Sustainable Finance shares the details of a R1 billion Blended Finance Programme to formalise and scale South Africa’s burgeoning affordable rental market. Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) has partnered with INDLU, a property financial technology company that empowers landowners to build, manage, and earn from high-quality rental housing. The programme aims to bridge the national housing gap—currently estimated at 2.3 million units—by providing sustainable, affordable credit to micro-developers who have historically been excluded from traditional banking sectors due to a perceived lack of formal collateral. Scalco says the programme represents a blueprint for how South African capital markets can drive large-scale, powerful social impact without compromising financial performance. Already delivered are over 2 200 high-quality rental units in areas such as Tembisa, Mamelodi, and Cosmo City. “From a pure sort of job creation perspective, there's quite a few local contractors that have built up teams and businesses. One of the success stories is one of the local contractors actually now does work across Sandton, Four Ways. So they've actually kind of branched out of just focusing on working with the INDLU team to build those units to building across South Africa, or building across Gauteng - and that's actually such a great story. It just shows you the power of getting an opportunity.”