News - Afrikan Heroes

Nigerian Solar Energy Startup Anergy Raises USD 9 Mn To Scale Operations

June 25, 2019

Startups in Nigeria do not seem to be leaving any stones unturned. Nigerian based solar energy distribution startup, Anergy has raised 9 million (NGN3.2 billion) in Series A to fund its commercial growth with new business models, improve on partnership avenues, and expand its activities.

The Funding At A Glance

The funding round was led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, while Shell-funded All On Energy, the European Union-backed ElectriFI and the Norwegian Investment Fund for Developing Countries (Norfund) participated in the capital injection.
Founded in 2014 by Femi Adeyemo and Kunle Odebunmi, Anergy provides solar power systems to homes and businesses, with a special focus on companies spanning the hospitality, education, financial, agriculture, and healthcare industries.
In the last half-a-decade, the startup claims to have installed over 2 MW of clean energy solutions for more than 2,000 clients.

Funding Was To Scale Operations

“We believe that energy needs in Nigeria have surpassed rudimentary requirements of low power utilization and our product offerings are solving for reliability and not just access,” says CEO Femi Adeyemo, Anergy

“ElectriFI, an EU-funded access to energy impact facility, is thrilled to join such a strong group of investors backing visionary entrepreneurs who will positively impact thousands of local businesses in Nigeria,” said Dominiek Deconinck, ElectriFI Fund Manager.

What Anergy Does

Anergy’s distributed energy systems leverage the amalgamation of solar power, superior storage solutions, and proprietary remote management technologies. The startup uses this to deliver scalable, reliable, and affordable solutions designed to address the problems associated with intermittency and grid unreliability.

“Arnergy inherently understands the West African market and its need for power reliability. Creating accessibility to reliable renewable energy sources is paramount to economic growth in this region.With Arnergy’s technology, we can significantly decrease carbon emissions, and it’s a model that can be replicated all over the developing world,” said Carmichael Roberts of Breakthrough Energy Ventures.

What Attracted Investors To The Startup

The startup got the investment because, according to Mark Davis, EVP Clean Energy from Norfund,

“Access to clean and stable energy is a prerequisite for job creation and development.’’

Davis said Norfund is proud to support the expansion of Arnergy which will provide Nigerian households and businesses on a weak-grid connection with a cheaper, cleaner and more reliable power solution to meet their daily needs.

‘‘ElectriFI, an EU-funded access to energy impact facility, is thrilled to join such a strong group of investors backing visionary entrepreneurs who will positively impact thousands of local businesses in Nigeria,” said Dominiek Deconinck, ElectriFI Fund Manager.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Nigerian ed-tech Startup ScholarX Raises $100k in pre-seed Round

June 24, 2019

Nigerian ed-tech startup ScholarX has joined the league of African startups that raise funds to kick-start their businesses. The startup has raised US$100,000 towards an intended US$200,000 pre-seed funding round to launch new products and grow its team.

At A Glance

The startup was launched in Nigeria in 2016. The ScholarX app allows users to select parameters and scroll through lists of available scholarships that match their requirements.

Co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of ScholarX, Bola Lawal said this round of funding for ScholarX (US$100,000 of a pre-seed round so far) came mostly from angel investors.

“We are primarily raising for our new model, called SkillsFund, which we are ready to run a full pilot of in July,” he said.

“SkillsFund democratises labour-force reconditioning by providing financing to help new entrants — recent graduates — get up-skilled via verified training partners in in-demand skills and then help place them with local employers seeking fresh talent.”

The World Bank ‘s map of tech hubs in Africa. Click here for a more expanded view

The startup said funds raised would also go towards building the startup’s capacity in terms of staff and technology to handle funding, recruitment, and placement of successful students in the program.

“This means that ScholarX will be positioned to actualise its goal of building an ecosystem around education financing for current students and recent graduates. It means that we won’t just stop at providing scholarships but provide additional training opportunities that will directly lead to jobs for the growing youth population,” he said.

ScholarX last rolled out a new product back in 2017 when it launched Village, an education crowdfunding platform that allows African secondary school and university students to create fundraising campaigns for backing by sponsors.

The Nigerian startup took part in the global WISE Accelerator and the Cape Town-based Injini ed-tech incubator last year and was named part of the third Google Launchpad Africa accelerator cohort in March.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Zimbabwe Set To Reset Its Currency — Outlaws Usage of Rand, US Dollar and Botswana’s Pula

“References to the currency of Zimbabwe shall, with effect from the 24th of June 2019 be construed as references to the form of legal tender and the electronic currency with which the term Zimbabwe dollar is.’’

The above statement is from the Zimbabwean government as the country begins a new journey to reshape its bad currency.

Henceforth, international and regional currencies such as the rand, US Dollar, Botswana Pula, and British Pound will no longer be acceptable in Zimbabwe as legal tender. Zimbabwean Finance Minister has gazetted mandatory and sole usage of the Zimbabwe Dollar for all local transactions.

‘It is hereby notified that the Minister of Finance … has made the following regulations; Zimbabwe dollar to be the sole currency for legal tender purposes,” reads a part of the Statutory Instrument issued today.

“With effect from the 24th June 2019, the British pound, United States Dollar, South Africa rand, Botswana Pula and any other foreign currency whatsoever shall no longer be legal tender alongside the Zimbabwe dollar in any transactions in Zimbabwe.”

The Statutory Instrument states that “references to the Zimbabwe dollar are coterminous with references to the following and to no other forms of legal tender or currency — (1) the bond notes and coins, 2.) the electronic currency that is to say the RTGS$”.

Zimbabwe has been using multiple currencies since 2009 when hyper-inflation ravaged the country’s local unit.

In 2016, the central bank of Zimbabwe introduced bond notes which traded at par with the US Dollar but have quickly been losing value.

Zimbabwe Is Poised To Have Its New Currency Now Or Never

Earlier this year, Zimbabwe introduced a new currency, the RTGS$ with President Emerson Mnangagwa and the Finance Minister, Mthuli Ncube, saying in the past few months that Zimbabwe was set to have a substantive currency of its own.

It also says the current bond notes and RTGS$ are at par with the Zimbabwe dollar. This has been viewed as an effective introduction of a new currency for Zimbabwe, which is currently battling a severe financial crisis.

Free For All

Companies such as Old Mutual have been accused by allies of President Mnangagwa for fueling informal market currency rates which have spiked out of control. Early Monday morning, the bond notes were trading around 1:10 against the US Dollar while the official interbank market rate is around 1:6.2.

Other listed companies in Zimbabwe have been facing accounting challenges and several have sought permission from the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange to delay financials following the introduction of the RTGS$ in February this year.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Mutual Funds Investment In Nigeria Shoots Through The Roof. Hits Over $2 billion

Mutual money managers in Nigeria are having the best of fun. Figures from Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission show that it is one sector of the country’s Stock Exchange that is still making profit. The value of mutual funds investment hit N746.5bn at the end of May 2019 according to SEC.

Mutual funds are professionally-managed investment programs that pool money from many investors to purchase securities.
They are made up of ethical funds, equity-based funds, money market funds, bonds funds, fixed income funds, real estate investment funds, and mixed funds.

A Break Down of The Figures

The figures show that:

Money market fund, which invests only in highly liquid instruments such as cash, cash equivalent securities and high credit rating debt-based securities with a short-term maturity — less than 13 months-recorded the highest investment of N563.9bn, made up of funds pooled from 19 investment schemes.
Money market funds offer high liquidity with a very low level of risk.

The Schemes Under The Fund Are:

Top Money Managers

S/N	NAME OF COMPANY	VALUE OF MONEY MARKET FUND (NAIRA)
1	Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund ()	262.66 billion
2	FBN Money Market Fund ()	163.27 billion
3	ARM Money Market Fund	57.88 billion
4	AXA Mansard Money Market Fund	25.73 billion
5	Abacus Money Market Fund	9.88 billion
6	Zenith Money Market Fund	7.52 billion
7	EDC Money Market Fund Class A)	6.16 billion
8	Cordros Money Market Fund	5.83 billion
9	Coronation Money Market Fund	5.82 billion
10	Legacy Money Market Fund	5.42 billion
11	United Capital Money Market Fund	4.58 billion
12	Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund	3.24 billion
13	Chapel Hill Denham Money Market Fund	1.62 billion
14	AIICO Money Market Fund	979 million
15	GDL Money Market Fund	953 million
16	Meristem Money Market Fund	782 million
17	PACAM Money Market Fund	601 million
18	Afrinvest Plutus Fund	596 million
19	EDC Money Market Fund Class B	368 million

The top three fund managers under the money market fund were:

Stanbic IBTC Asset Management Limited
FBN Capital Asset Management Limited
Asset & Resources Management Company Limited.

Fixed income funds increased by 11.56 percent month-on-month to N78.27bn from N70.16bn in April.

Real estate funds, pooled from three sources:

Skye Shelter Fund
Union Homes REITs
UPDC Real Estate Investment Fund –

Real estate funds stood at N45.55bn, an increase of 0.73 percent from the N45.22bn recorded in April.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Swvl Raises US$42 Million Series B Round of Funding for Further Expansion

June 22, 2019

Egypt’s Swvl, a mass-transit system that enables riders heading in the same direction to share a ride in a van or bus, has raised US$42 million as it looks to expand into other parts of Africa, including Nigeria.

Its latest round of investment is the largest ever secured by an Egyptian tech startup, beating its own record, and is co-led by Vostok Ventures and BECO Capital. Also participating are Arzan VC, Autotech, Blustone, Endeavor Catalyst, MSA, OTF Jasoor Ventures, Sawari Ventures, and Property Finder chief executive officer (CEO) Michael Lahyani.

The funding will see Swvl continue to solidify its position as a leader in building tech-enabled public transportation. It already facilitates hundreds of thousands of rides each month, serving tens of thousands of customers on its network of more than 200 routes in Cairo and Alexandria in Egypt, and Nairobi in Kenya. Other African launches are planned, while Swvl is also launching an R&D facility in Berlin, Germany.

“The plan is to be in at least two or three more African cities by the end of the year,’’ Mostafa Kandil, the founder and chief executive officer, said. “Lagos, Nigeria, is most likely the next market.’’

Not Afraid Of Competition

Although Swvl is the first riding app to offer bus services in Egypt, giant transportation startups Careem and Uber have recently offered their own bus services.

Mostafa Kandil, Egyptian CEO and founder of Swvl, has however noted that the joining of Uber and Careem to the industry has not influenced Swvl’s growth asserting that they have witnessed remarkable development since the two competitive players have launched.
In 2018, the startup was valued at nearly US$100 million, becoming the second Egyptian company after Fawryto reaches these figures.

The startup has recently signed an agreement with Ford motor company to deploy more cars on the road. Ford Transit, which the startup intends to use is already the third best selling van of all times. SWVL is already in possession of about 100 Ford Transits. Hazem Taher, SWVL’s Head Marketing Manager, said the vans were ready to go and they’re excited to push them on SWVL’s route.

The startup launched its bus sharing services in Nairobi early this year after raising more than US$30 million in 2018 at a valuation of approximately US$100 million.

Founded in 2018 by Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh, Swvl is presently available in 200 routes between Cairo, Alexandria, and Nairobi.

To date, the app which is available for both Android and iOS users has registered over a million customers who frequently use their services.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Central Bank of Kenya Says Kenyans Abroad Must Bring Back Sh1,000 Notes

June 21, 2019

Kenya ’s Central Bank is issuing a serious last warning: no foreign bank will agree to take the old Kenyan Sh, 1000 notes. Hence, holders of such will have to bring them back to Kenya physically for conversion to the new currency.

”CBK Is Not Providing Any New Generation Bank Notes To Lenders Outside The Country”

The CBK boss said the regulator is also not providing any new generation bank notes to lenders outside the country to facilitate the conversion, arguing that this would defeat the goal of combating illicit money flows that have informed the move to demonetize the old Sh,1000 currency.

‘‘Anyone holding the old Sh1,000 bank notes outside the country will have to bring them back to exchange with the new currency before the October 1 deadline, Central Bank of Kenya,’’ (CBK) Governor Patrick Njoroge said.

CBK ruled out allowing any form of conversion of the old notes outside Kenya’s borders, indicating that the regulator had notified all foreign banks to stop recognizing the legacy currency.

“If you have the Kenyan currency and you happen to be outside the country, there is only one way to get value for it before October 1. You have to take a trip here and go through the procedures outlined in the gazette notice and subsequent releases,” said Dr Njoroge at a press briefing yesterday.

“You cannot convert it to any other currency out there, since this would defeat the process of demonetisation.”

Those coming into Kenya to convert their notes will follow the same procedures laid out for locals. Converting between Sh1 million and Sh5 million is happening at all commercial bank branches, where customers are expected to make declarations on the source of their cash.

Persons exchanging more than Sh5 million will need to get an endorsement from CBK, as will those exchanging more than Sh1 million but do not have bank accounts.

Dr. Njoroge added that the net has been cast wider to forestall efforts to clean dirty money in other jurisdictions that carry out significant financial transactions with Kenya.

Both the Bank of Uganda and the Bank of Tanzania Issued Notices Earlier This Month Freezing the Conversion of the old Kenyan Notes in Their Banks

Both banks have also advised their countries’ banks to subject all flows to higher due diligence processes.

The Kenyan shilling is commonly used to transact goods and services in neighboring countries, especially now that East African Community rules allow free movement of people and goods across regional borders.

Anyone holding the old Sh1,000 banknotes outside the country will have to bring them back to exchange with the new currency before the October 1 deadline.

The shillings find their way back home through the same trade routes, as well as official currency repatriation mechanisms between the central banks of the respective countries in the bloc.

The CBK has ruled out making an extension to the October 1 deadline for the demonetization process, saying that doing so would provide those looking to get rid of illicit funds a loophole to do so.

The new notes contain features that are identifiable by touch to accommodate the visually impaired, which cannot be put on a polymer note.

Taking into account the rough handling of Kenyan banknotes that produces rapid wear and tear, CBK applied varnish on the notes that will allow them three to five years of usage, 30 percent longer than the older notes they are replacing.

Polymer notes on average last two-and-a-half times longer than cotton paper, but are twice as expensive.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Largest U.S Investment In Africa Underway In Mozambique

Trump’s administration has few months to complete its tenure but Africa appears the last bait of his administration. In a landmark investment, Trump’s administration is backing the largest-ever U.S. source investment in Africa as the Houston-based Fortune 500 oil and gas independent Anadarko Petroleum Corp. invests in $20 billion Liquefied Natural Gas project in Mozambique.

The Terms Of The Deal

The project when completed would be Mozambique’s first onshore LNG development, initially consisting of two LNG trains with a total capacity of 12.88 million tons annually.
Liquefied natural gas is natural gas that has been cooled down to liquid form for ease and safety of non-pressurized storage or transport.
The project will support the development of the Golfinho-Atum natural gas fields located offshore in the Rovuma basis on the northern coast of Mozambique in the Indian Ocean.
According to the Mozambique government, the project will initially supply volumes of approximately 100 million cubic feet of natural gas per day for domestic sales in Mozambique and key LNG buyers in Asia and Europe.
As of year-end 2018, Anadarko had revenues exceeding $13 billion and produced nearly 1.47 billion barrels-equivalent of proved reserves, making it one of the world’s largest independent oil and gas exploration and production companies. Last month, Anadarko agreed to be acquired by Los Angeles-based Occident in a cash-and-stock deal.

Why the US Is Getting Involved?

Although the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Commerce Karen Dunn Kelley led a delegation of U.S. government officials to witness the historic $20 billion signing ceremony by Anadarko and the government of Mozambique to construct a Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) terminal just off the coast of the southeast African nation. It appears the U.S is rather coming when China has already taken over the business landscape of the continent.

Trump administration officials said involvement in the Mozambique project and the Commerce Department-led delegation’s trip to the African nation underscores America’s commitment to expanding trade, investment and commercial ties between the two countries and the Sub-Saharan African region.

“The Trump Administration is committed to increasing trade with African nations where all can reap the benefits of new investments and economic growth,” Kelley said. “American companies and products set the standard in the international market and the historic deal signing between Anadarko Petroleum and the Government of Mozambique reaffirms the goal of achieving long term economic development throughout the region.”

Chinese President Xi Jinping recently pledged $60bn in financial aid to Africa and promised to write off debt for the country’s poorer nations. China has been Africa’s biggest trading partner over the past decade.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

South Africa ’s ‘Uber of Cleaning Services’ Gets $2 Million Investment From Naspers

Startups across Africa are having a field day raising funds for their businesses. The latest to join is sweepSouth, South Africa ’s ‘Uber of cleaning services.’

The Deal At A Glance:

The investment is from internet giant Naspers’s Foundry investment fund for South African startups. This is the first investment Naspers Foundry would be making. With a $2 million (R30 million) investment in the gig economy startup SweepSouth, Naspers’ Foundry is making a big bet.

“The investment kicks off Naspers’ commitment to supporting talented and ambitious entrepreneurs in South Africa who are using technology to improve people’s daily lives,” said Naspers chief executive Bob van Dijk.

“We are inspired by entrepreneurs like Aisha and Alen who use innovative technology to improve people’s lives. We know what it takes to scale tech businesses, and the team is looking forward to working together with SweepSouth to help them do that.”

Naspers Foundry is a $98 million (R1.4 billion) fund that was announced last year as part of the South Africa Investment Conference last October, held by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to spur investment into the country

The Business Is To Simply ‘Clean’

Founded in 2013, the Cape Town-based startup is an online cleaning service for domestic cleaners in South Africa’s major urban centers, founded by couple Aisha Pandor and Alen Ribic, who invested their savings for their children’s university studies in the startup after they struggled to find a cleaner.

The startup is often referred to as the “Uber of cleaning.”

SweepSouth has reached $7 million (R100 million) in revenues in the past year.

“We went from the two of us working around our dining-room table — both of us sitting all day and working on this business plan — to going from a few domestic workers we were interviewing ourselves,” Pandor has said, and “even went from cleaning houses ourselves to having 11,000 domestic workers on the platform”.

Pandor said SweepSouth was “ecstatic” about the investment and aims to use it to expand into other home services and growing beyond the South African market.

“We are proud to have provided employment opportunities for thousands of people, many of whom are single mothers. To be able to bring these opportunities to a new region in South Africa is both rewarding and exciting,” said Pandor, who is the daughter of South African cabinet minister Naledi Pandor, who is minister of international relations and cooperation.

“We see ourselves as an emerging market-focused platform that aims to serve the many professionals who don’t have the time to source the services we provide, whilst also creating meaningful employment opportunities.”

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Nigeria: Ride-Hailing Startup MAX.ng Raises $7M Round To Go Electric

June 20, 2019

The competition just got hotter now. Nigerian ride-hailing startup MAX.ng is not taking the recent triumph of its competitor Gokada for granted. The Nigerian motorcycle transit startup has raised a $7 million funding round led by Novastar Ventures, with the participation of Japanese manufacturer Yamaha. This is the 8th largest funding so far in 2019 by any African startup.

Here Is The Deal

The $7 million new funding came from Novastar Ventures, with the participation of Japanese manufacturer Yamaha.
Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Zrosk Investment Management, and Alitheia Capital joined Novastar Ventures and Yamaha in the $7 million round. The new funding takes MAX’s total funding to $9 million.
This move by Yamaha is the second in less than a year in an emerging market ride-hail company.
Just last December, the Japanese company invested $150 million in Grab, a Southeast Asian two and four-wheel on-demand transit company.
Yamaha’s investment in MAX indicates global interest in Africa’s two-wheel ride-hail space. Overall, the motorcycle taxi market is becoming a significant sub-sector on the continent’s mobility startup landscape.
Co-founded in 2015 by MIT Sloan alumni Adetayo Bamiduro and Chinedu Azodah, MAX has completed over 1 million trips and is one of the largest delivery partners in West Africa for Jumia — the e-commerce unicorn that recently listed on the NYSE.
Based in Lagos, the startup’s app-based platform coordinates motorcycle taxi and delivery services for individuals and businesses. Six-million of the investment is in Series A capital followed by $1 million in grants.

New Funds, Bold Moves

Things are going to be interesting. MAX.ng is going for a shocker, a history-breaking feat: electric motorcycles, backed by the new funding. This could be a first in Africa’s growing motorcycle ride-hail market, should this happen. The new funding will go into Electric Vehicles development.

“We’re piloting electric motorcycles in partnership with EV manufacturers and working with grid operators across Nigeria to deploy charging stations,” MAX.ng CFO Guy-Bertrand Njoya said.

MAX has an extended menu for the round, including the company’s payment infrastructure.

“We intend to invest massively in our technology capabilities,”Njoja said.

The startup will also expand to 10 cities in West Africa (starting in Ghana and Ivory Coast) and add new vehicle classes — including watercraft and three-wheeled tuk-tuk taxis.

MAX’s current fleet consists primarily of Yamaha Crux Rev and Indian manufacturer Bajaj’s Pulsar motorcycles.

This Round Of Funding Will Also Fuel Massive Research

Yamaha, the lead investor is looking at connecting the startup to market research and Yamaha’s existing Nigeria operations.

“We want to work with good entrepreneurs in Africa to develop new business in Africa,” Shoji Shiraishi of Yamaha Motor Company’s New Venture Business Development Section told TechCrunch.

“We really want to understand local needs for motorcycles and…to support [MAX] expanding their business,” he said.

He added that Yamaha sells and manufactures motorcycles in Nigeria

The Competition Is On And Is Steaming

Just last month MAX competitor Gokada (also based in Lagos) raised a $5.3 round and announced it would expand in East Africa. Rwanda has motorbike taxi startups SafeMotos and Yegomoto. Uganda-based motorcycle ride-hail company SafeBoda expanded into Kenya in 2018 and recently raised a Series B round, co-led by the venture arms of Germany’s Allianz and Indonesia’s Go-Jek.

On the question of how MAX will compete in a market with more players, co-founder Chinedu Azodoh named diversification and satisfying drivers.

“We’re a very driver-centric business and at the end of the day the driver is where the business is at,” he said, highlighting the ability of MAX’s platform to deliver market-share to those drivers.

“[Also]Strategic for us is making sure we’re doing the right thing at the right time,” he said, indicating the company has already scaled up and scaled down certain service offerings in response to market needs.

“If we find that maybe there’s something else we’re missing out on, we’re happy to jump into that,” Azohdo said.

Also on the big edge, the startup has over others, Azodoh says MAX’s mix of business delivery and personal transit offers an advantage over competitors. He noted that MAX.ng has local developer team and is always looking at new revenue opportunities.

Electric Motorcycles Powered By Renewable Energy

Max.ng is banking on this, at last as the ultimate winner.

“The economics are promising and could offer significant value to the drivers and end-users,” MAX CFO Guy-Bertrand Njoya said

Motorcycle transit ventures are vying to digitize a share of Africa’s boda-boda and Okada markets (the name for motorcycle taxis in East and West Africa) — representing a collective revenue pool of $4 billion (now) that’s expected to double by 2021, per a TechSci study.

Uber began offering a two-wheel transit option in East Africa in 2018, around the same time Bolt (previously Taxify) started motorcycle taxi service in Kenya.

With electric motorcycle taxis in African cities powered by renewable energy becoming a reality, a new stage is set for the continent’s current position in the transformation of global mobility.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Russian inDriver Joins Ride-Hailing Competition In Africa. Next Bus Stop: Nigeria

Expect more cars, or more ride-hailing options soon across major African cities. Russian startup inDriver is next on the line. Already launched in Arusha, Tanzania last year, inDriver has expanded to Nairobi, Johannesburg and Cape Town. Its next bus stop is most likely Nigeria, and that would be sooner than you think. The startup’s aim is to enter major cities in Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Uganda, and Namibia within the shortest feasible time. It has recently been subtly pushing for drivers to register with it in Nigeria.

Here Is Why inDriver May Put Up A Fight With Uber Or Bolt For Market Shares

At A Glance:

Founded in Yakutsk in 2012, inDriver now has more than 24 million users in more than 200 cities in over 20 countries.
The startup is one of the top 10 ridesharing and taxi apps worldwide by downloads.
Currently, the company operates in the United States, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Brazil, Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Peru, El Salvador, Chile, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Panama, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Tanzania, South Africa and Kenya.
In fact, in just six months after launch, more than 60 thousand people joined the startup either as drivers or riders.

Johannesburg:

In Johannesburg, South Africa, inDriver already has an estimated 3,000 registered drivers.

Creativity In Competition:

inDriver’s strategy is to give its customers the power to fix the fare they would want to pay, much like traditional car-hailing taxis, except, of course, that the customers, instead of the drivers, peg the initial offer.

“Passengers enter the amount they are willing to pay for a trip and drivers then bid on the offer. The bargaining function on the app makes the ride-hailing service well suited to longer commutes, from neighbouring suburbs into hubs like Sandton and the CBD.

“A unique feature to inDriver is that drivers are not automatically assigned to riders. Passengers receive multiple offers from drivers in the area and are given the opportunity to select one based on fare amounts, driver ratings, estimated time of arrival and vehicle model. The trip is confirmed once both parties agree to the fare,” the startup said.

This innovation is probably a game changer in the face of growing stiff competition with the other car-hailing startups such as Uber and Taxify, and the depreciating purchasing power of car-hailing users in Africa.

However, unlike others that allow you to pay using your credit cards, inDriver says it works on a cash-only basis.

Safety:

inDriver has security features such as “A safety button’’ for both driver and rider, linked to emergency numbers, and is integrated into the app. In addition, both parties can share their GPS location and other details of rides in real time with trusted contacts.

Drivers Are Increasingly Having A Say In The Multi-Billion Dollar Industry.

The first problem inDriver is planning to solve to stick out of the competition is to endear itself to its drivers. Thus, even if the hailers have cut their prices, the drivers always have the final say, by way of the commission they earn. There are already signs that the startup has its drivers at heart.

What it did in Tanzania was a big shot. Drivers were given an initial six-month period without charging commissions after which the startup charged the drivers just 5% to 8% in commissions. At this rate, it is the lowest by commission among the three major car-hailing companies. Uber is charging 25% and Bolt is hovering around 15%. In addition to the attractive commissions, drivers will also be able to view both pick-up and destination points before accepting rides.

The competition would, of course, be fierce. Drivers who are willing to work long hours may win, not riders. This is because each driver can now sign up on all the competing platforms and become more loyal to the ones that respect their time and hard work, at the same time honoring riders by giving them more reasons to hail them.

Does this mean more income for the ride-hailing industries yet? Not very much in the offing. Each of them would have to contend with operational cost and the need to make profit and scale to the business. But the problem still remains that winning drivers’ loyalty only by doling out incentives will most possibly mean subsidizing customer rides for a longer time, and more promotions, of course, to boost drivers’ earnings.

In all these, the startups may keep losing, failing to even record a profitable outing. Ask Uber which just filed its SEC-1 and completed its IPO recently. The company’s largest expense in the middle of huge losses on a global scale is its “cost of revenue.” The cost of revenue is a category that includes incentives paid to drivers.

The news may be more pessimistic than it is cheerful, but here is the fact: over the past seven months, inDriver, a five-year-old Russian ride-hailing company, has gone from launching in its first African city to operating in four. It does seem something has finally come home to roost.

And gradually, global ride-hailing giant Uber has gone from having no competitors in Africa to having more than 50.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.