Kunyalala is a South African based entrepreneur and businesswoman, a social activist and has served on a number of boards of companies and non-profit organizations. She has extensive experience in commercial law, having worked for more than 15 years in areas spanning from mergers and acquisitions, competition law, project and acquisition finance. She has done work in a number of African countries outside South Africa including Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Cote D’Ivoire, Kenya, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

She is co-founder and principal partner for Brighton Wealth Subsaharan, a South African based investment and advisory firm with a diversified investment portfolio of small, scalable companies. She was previously managing director of Subsaharan Concessions, a South African, large-scale project development company operating on the African continent.

Maphisa is currently the president of the Businesswomen’s Association of South Africa, the largest association of professional and businesswomen in South Africa. She has also served on the board of Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) the apex business representative organization in South Africa representing business associations and business chambers locally and internationally. She has served as a member of the African Businesswomen’s Network Think Tank amongst others. She works with various not-for-profit organisations building capacity and assisting with fund raising. She has previously served in various senior executive positions including serving with Ernst & Young South Africa in the firm’s accounts and markets unit and later corporate finance unit where she was head of emerging markets, including the Africa sub area.

Maphisa is an attorney by profession and she specialised in mergers and acquisitions, and competition Law in practice. She holds both bachelor’s and master’s of laws degrees from the University of Cape Town (UCT). She also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (BA), in public policy and industrial relations also from UCT.

She has occasionally represented South African business at various international meetings, and forums including United Nations, SADC meetings and at regional African Union (AU) meetings in various African countries. She continues to write and comment on transformation issues and has presented papers at various national and international forums.

Maphisa is an alumni and Fellow of the Desmond Tutu Fellowship (Tutu Fellow) through the African Leadership Institute at Oxford University, and a member of various bodies globally, including the Crans Montana Forum as a Young Global Leader.