In the mid-1990s, Ike Cha financed his first investment property on a credit card. It wasn’t recklessness, it was a calculated bet: downtown property values were depressed, and the cost of credit-card interest was still lower than the expected return. That first property funded the next, and the one after that.
Building a diversified portfolio, on purpose
Cha is the founder, chairman and CEO of Lionshare Venture Holdings, a majority black-owned investment company he built with a diversified portfolio spanning property, logistics, tourism, FMCG and fuel, specifically to spread risk across multiple income streams rather than depend on one sector.
“Some businesses help keep the lights on and others are for long-term value creation,” he says of the strategy. Lionshare has since grown into a major player in South Africa’s B-BBEE retail fuel sector through further acquisitions.
Why he treats risk differently
“Everything in life is a risk, even being too fearful to do anything is a risk, maybe even the biggest one,” Cha says. That philosophy shaped a career that moved from a multinational corporate background (he spent years at Coca-Cola before starting Lionshare) into building a business now employing over 1,000 people.
What the corporate years taught him
Cha credits his time in the corporate world for teaching him to plan properly. “Corporations have a systematic way of approaching each project, with clear objectives of what they are trying to achieve, and how they plan to achieve it. The devil is always in the details.”
Funding entrepreneurs like planting seeds
Cha is candid about South Africa’s funding gap for entrepreneurs. “Funding entrepreneurs is like farming. If you plant 5,000 seeds, 3,000 might germinate, and 2,000 could make it to harvesting. Yet those 2,000 plants could produce a 1,000% multiple of the original seeds.” His argument to funders: expect a portion of funded businesses to fail, but fund with enough scale and follow-through support that the ones that succeed create real jobs and returns.
On entrepreneurship without guarantees
Cha is equally blunt about entitlement among aspiring entrepreneurs who expect government hand-outs rather than earning their way in. “They miss the ‘X-factor’ that entrepreneurship demands: the guts, the skin in the game, and the mantra of no pain, no gain.”
Frequently asked questions
What’s the core lesson from Ike Cha’s approach to risk?
That inaction carries its own risk. Calculated risk-taking, backed by real cost-benefit analysis rather than recklessness, built his first investment property and every one that followed.
Why does Lionshare hold such a diversified portfolio?
Deliberately, to mitigate risk and create multiple income streams, some for stability and cash flow, others for long-term value creation.
What does Cha see as the biggest problem with how funders approach entrepreneurs?
That most funders don’t accept enough risk of failure across a large enough pool of businesses to let the eventual winners scale and create real impact.
Building for the long game
Cha’s approach, calculated risk, deliberate diversification and a refusal to expect handouts, offers a candid, still-relevant model for South African entrepreneurs thinking beyond a single business or sector.
Further reading: What Property Entrepreneurs Should Know About Investment Risk | Department of Trade, Industry and Competition for official B-BBEE ownership requirements
Originally published in May 2019. Updated September 2026 to confirm Lionshare’s continued growth, including its major B-BBEE fuel retail expansion. Cha’s underlying philosophy on risk and funding remains current.
