South Africa’s small business and start-up sector is driven by dreams and determination. One can understand how investors are duped by people masquerading as honest, hard-working, grassroots entrepreneurs. A “fake-it-till-you-make-it” culture is rife because, honestly, which investor would hand money to the bright-eyed dreamer who admits his business might fail? Stephen Timm has written a book about local start-up company Springleap and its founder Eran Eyal. Springleap was hailed as a major success by DesignIndaba and had partnerships with established local retailers like Big Blue. Eyal managed to build a reputation for Springleap out of nothing and defraud investors of millions of dollars. Stephen Timm traces the origins of the elaborate scam as a warning to investors: As innocuous as a start-up company might seem, caution is always advised. This article was first published on MyBroadband.- Melani Nathan