Metro Africa Xpress Inc., a Nigerian mobility tech startup, has secured $31 million in Series B funding and is planning to enter more markets across Africa.
The startup will use the funding to enter other markets in Africa by the end of the first quarter of 2022, as well as additional markets in East and Southern Africa by the end of the same year. The funds will be used to extend vehicle financing credit to over 100,000 drivers in the next two years.
MAX started out in 2015 as a delivery startup using motorcycles to fulfill customer orders before venturing into ride-Hailing, and later into vehicle subscription and financing services based on the data from its first service.
The CFO of the startup said that the rate of drivers leaving has crashed to zero after two years of vehicle financing.
Most of the drivers don't own the vehicles they use, and that's what we discovered after studying their operations.
The fundamental issue that drivers face is consistent access to vehicles. If we are to solve the challenge of mobility across the continent, we need to address the issue of vehicle access.
MAX designs and builds its own line of electric motorcycles. The photo was taken by MAX.
Data provided by the mobility company in credit risk assessment is what MAX's commercial bank partners use to extend vehicle purchase loans to drivers.
MAX plans to build electric vehicle infrastructure in its new markets in order to introduce EVs to its emerging clientele.
It is another milestone in our journey to make mobility safe, affordable, accessible, and sustainable by using high- performance technologies and operators. The investment will allow us to transform the lives of hundreds of thousands of drivers across the continent, accelerate international expansion, and continue our innovative initiatives in the mobility space. Chinedu Azodoh is one of the startup's co-founders.
MAX wanted to find a solution to growing driver earnings by reducing their operating costs, as it was one of the challenges that the company was at the centre of.
MAX started their electric mobility journey in the year 2019. The company provides two, three and four-wheeler EV's to drivers through various financing options.
It is an additional option that we wanted to provide to the drivers because they care most about making a decent living through increased income. Electric mobility is going to be a significant driver of that objective because they are more cost-effective than their gas equivalents.
MAX designs and builds its own line of electric motorcycles. Yamaha is one of the partners that they work with to deliver their EV.
We work with Yamaha on access to vehicles for drivers and access to finance. Yamaha has set up a dedicated driver vehicle financing entity for Africa against the backdrop of the work that they have been doing with us over the past couple of years.
Lightrock, a global private equity platform, is making its first investment in the African mobility space. The international venture capital firm, Global Ventures, as well as existing investors, Novastar Venture and Proparco, took part in the round.
The startup is trying to become the go-to vehicle subscription and financial services platform for millions of transport operators across the continent. 10,000 drivers under the platform in Nigeria will be able to acquire energy-efficient vehicles through a lease-to-own arrangement with Bolt.
