Ampersand - Afrikan Heroes

Rwanda-based Ampersand Secures New Seven-Figure Funding from Leading Investors

September 29, 2023

Against the backdrop of UNGA Climate Week, Beyond Capital Ventures has announced a new investment in Ampersand E-Mobility, an electric motorcycle and transport energy solutions company based in Africa. Ampersand has made strides in offering East Africa’s substantial taxi motorcyclist community an economically competitive electric motorcycle with improved user experience, while requiring minimal adjustments from customers.

Ampersand’s triple-bottom-line approach makes it a standout in Beyond Capital’s portfolio, with significant environmental benefits, including the displacement of 2.5 tons of CO2 emissions annually for each motorcycle. On an individual level, customers save around $1,000 annually, leading to transformative changes in their lives. The investment from Beyond Capital Ventures has enabled Ampersand to scale up to 1,350 motorcycles on the road and a 36% gross margin. The company plans to expand further, potentially into other markets, as they embark on a rapid transition to electric mobility.

This latest investment follows Ampersand’s prior funding from AlphaMundi Group (AMG), which injected $1 million into the company. AMG’s investment was aimed at supporting Ampersand’s mission to provide clean and affordable mobility solutions across East Africa. With AMG’s backing, Ampersand has been expanding its motorcycle fleet and battery swap stations in Rwanda and Kenya.

This investment adds to a series of previous financial boosts for Ampersand, including support from organizations like StartupBootcamp, FactorE Ventures, Ecosystem Integrity Fund, TotalEnergies Venture arm, the Rwanda Green Fund, USAID’s Development Innovation Ventures, Shell Foundation, the UK FCDO’s Frontier Technology Livestreaming fund, the New Zealand Government, and a loan from Blue Haven Initiative’s Catalytic Fund.

Daniel Silva, Investment Manager at AlphaMundi Group, expressed enthusiasm for the partnership with Ampersand, highlighting the company’s potential to provide motorcycle taxi and delivery drivers with an efficient and affordable income-generating asset while contributing to a more sustainable transportation future. Ampersand’s Founder and CEO, Josh Whale, emphasized the importance of electrifying East Africa’s motorcycle taxis in the wake of COP27, underlining the urgency of bold and innovative actions.

Ampersand, headquartered in Kigali, Rwanda, stands as Africa’s premier integrated electric motorcycle and transport energy solution provider. Their business centers around a network of battery swap stations and a fleet of unique electric motorcycles, managed through a user-friendly app and software backend. Since their commercial launch in 2019, Ampersand’s electric motorbikes have covered over 20 million kilometers in 2022, leading to a 41% increase in daily income for motorcycle drivers and a substantial reduction in carbon emissions.

AlphaMundi Group Ltd, the organization behind AMG’s investment in Ampersand, has been actively engaged in impact investing since its inception in 2008. They have invested over USD 110 million in 57 impact ventures in Latin America and Africa, primarily through the SocialAlpha and AlphaJiri impact investment funds. These investments span a range of debt and equity transactions and are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.

The AlphaJiri Investment Fund LP (Mauritius) represents their foray into debt, mezzanine, and equity investments with a focus on resilience and growth in impact ventures related to Sustainable Food and Renewable Energy sectors. It’s designed with a climate-smart and gender-lens orientation, primarily targeting East Africa. AlphaMundi’s broader commitment to sustainable development also extends through the AlphaMundi Foundation, which aims to bolster the long-term commercial viability of SMEs in Africa and Latin America through structured blended finance products and gender-lens investing for climate field building.

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Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert.
As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the continent’s pioneers in this regard

Rwanda’s Ampersand to Scale Operations to Kenya

November 3, 2021

Josh Whale, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Ampersand

Rwanda-based electric motorcycle company Ampersand has secured a US$9 million loan facility from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to expand its operations in Rwanda and Kenya. Launched commercially in May 2019, Ampersand assembles and finances electric motorcycles that cost less to buy and operate, and perform better than the five million petrol motorcycle taxis in use across East Africa.

The core of Ampersand’s business is the network of battery swap stations and fleet of batteries it builds and operates, which allows drivers to swap batteries faster than refilling a tank with petrol and shields vehicle buyers from the high upfront cost of a lithium battery pack.

Since its commercial launch in May 2019, Ampersand’s team has performed over 50,000 battery swaps, powering its fleet of 56 drivers for over two million kilometres. The startup has been fundraising to help it scale, and earlier this year secured a US$4 million investment from the Ecosystem Integrity Fund (EIF) and TotalEnergies.

It has now added to that with a US$9 million loan from the DFC, which will allow Ampersand to scale up the number of electric motorcycles on the road in Rwanda and Kenya to several thousand by the end of 2022. The loan is part of DFC’s Portfolio for Impact and Innovation (PI²) initiative and contributes to its commitment to the US Energy Compact and its target to address climate change with one third of its investments by 2023.

“We’re thrilled to have DFC on board with this historic investment, which is building momentum to electrify all of East Africa’s five million motorcycle taxis by 2030. DFC’s support underlines the viability and investability of electric two-wheelers for mass-market customers in the Global South, and the importance of this market to reaching net zero. On the eve of COP26 in Glasgow we believe bolder, fast-moving and innovative funds like PI² are urgently needed,” said Josh Whale, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Ampersand.

“DFC is proud to support Ampersand in their important and innovative work bringing e-mobility and electric motorcycles to Rwanda and Kenya,” said DFC’s chief climate officer Jake Levine. “DFC is focused on making impactful investments in developing countries that will help communities progress and grow while simultaneously building resilience and prosperity for a clean energy future — this investment and the incredible growth that Ampersand has demonstrated in the market represents a great step in that direction.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Rwandan E-Mobility Startup, Ampersand, Secures $9m In Debt Funding, Expands To Kenya

November 2, 2021

Ampersand Rwanda Ltd, Africa’s first electric mobility and financing company, has received a $9 million credit facility to help boost its operations in Rwanda, the continent’s largest operating market, and to fund its geographic growth in East Africa, notably in Kenya.

By 2022, the Rwandan mobility startup hopes to produce “thousands of electric motorcycles” for sale on the Rwandan and Kenyan markets.

This is its first operation in Africa in the field of electric mobility by the American development finance institution.

“We are delighted to have the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) on board, for this investment which provides the necessary impetus to electrify East Africa’s 5 million motorcycle taxis by 2030. The support from the DFC demonstrates the viability and possibility of investing in electric two-wheelers for mass market customers in sub-Saharan Africa,” said Josh Whale, CEO of Ampersand.

This credit facility adds to Ampersand’s $ 4 million financing from the venture capital fund Ecosystem Integrity Fund (EIF) and Total Energies in April.

Ampersand claims to have given its fleet of 56 drivers with over 50,000 battery exchanges for over more than 2 million kilometers since its commercial launch in May 2019.

Why The Investors Invested

Launched in 2019, and headquartered in Kigali, Rwanda, Ampersand manufactures and finances electric motorcycles (‘emotos’ or ‘e-bodas’) that are less expensive, cleaner, and more efficient than the 5 million petrol motorcycle taxis that are currently in use across East Africa. Ampersand also owns and operates a network of battery swap stations, which allow drivers to change batteries faster than they can fill up their gas tank. The motorcycles are assembled in Rwanda using parts imported from a variety of sources.

The startup’s fleet of 35 drivers and e-motos has travelled over 1.3 million kilometres since its commercial launch in May 2019, and over 7000 drivers are on the waiting list.

“We design and build the battery packs ourselves. Our fleet of connected batteries, vehicles and network of swap stations is also run on a proprietary software platform, which we created ourselves in Rwanda,” Josh said.

Ampersand mobility Kenya Ampersand mobility Kenya

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Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning write

Rwandan Electric Mobility Startup Ampersand Raises $3.5m

April 10, 2021

Ampersand Rwanda Ltd, a Kigali-based e-mobility startup and Africa’s first electric motorcycle venture, has just received a $3.5 million investment from the Ecosystem Integrity Fund (EIF). The deal is the first time a venture capital group has invested in an e-mobility project in Sub-Saharan Africa, and it marks a turning point in global electric transportation.

“We’re thrilled to have EIF on board for this historic investment. We now have the momentum to scale our operations to electrify all of East Africa’s 5 million taxi motorcycles by 2030. EIF’s support further dispels the myth that electric transport will happen in rich nations first and trickle down to developing countries later, second-hand,” says Josh Whale, Founder/CEO of Ampersand.

“This investment shows that E-mobility in 2021 is just as much about motorbike taxi drivers in east Africa as it is about the launch of the large electric SUVs, pickups, and sedans around the world,” he said.

Emmanuel Hakizimana, Ampersand’s Country Director and Electrical Engineer, (left) and Josh Whale, Ampersand’s CEO, in Rwanda for the e-Moto trials ahead of the commercial launch in late 2019. Image courtesy: Ampersand

Here Is What You Need To Know

The EIF’s investment follows the startup’s acceleration through StartupBootcamp and early-stage financing from FactorE Ventures in 2018; as well as generous support from the Rwanda Green Fund, USAID’s Development Innovation Ventures, Shell Foundation, the UK FCDO’s Frontier Technology Livestreaming fund, the New Zealand Government, and a loan from Blue Haven Initiative’s Catalytic Fund.

With the investment, Ampersand will be expanding its operations into neighbouring countries, beginning with Kenya, where there is a sizable demand.

Why The Investors Invested

Based in San Francisco, United States, Ecosystem Integrity Fund (“EIF”) is an early growth stage investor in companies contributing to environmental sustainability.

“We have confidence in the Ampersand team, and we believe the time is right,” said James Everett, Managing Partner of EIF. “We are very excited to partner with Ampersand as the company scales in Rwanda and expands across East Africa. We believe that electrifying 2 and 3 wheeled vehicles in developing countries represents one of the low hanging fruits for climate change mitigation globally, and can have a profound positive impact on urban air quality.”

A Look At What Ampersand Does

Launched in 2019, and headquartered in Kigali, Rwanda, Ampersand manufactures and finances electric motorcycles (‘emotos’ or ‘e-bodas’) that are less expensive, cleaner, and more efficient than the 5 million petrol motorcycle taxis that are currently in use across East Africa. Ampersand also owns and operates a network of battery swap stations, which allow drivers to change batteries faster than they can fill up their gas tank. The motorcycles are assembled in Rwanda using parts imported from a variety of sources.

The startup’s fleet of 35 drivers and e-motos has travelled over 1.3 million kilometres since its commercial launch in May 2019, and over 7000 drivers are on the waiting list.

“We design and build the battery packs ourselves. Our fleet of connected batteries, vehicles and network of swap stations is also run on a proprietary software platform, which we created ourselves in Rwanda,” Josh said.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer