As the transition to clean energy gains momentum, MAX co-founders, Chinedu Azodoh (left) and Adetayo Bamiduro, plan to make clean-energy transportation a reality in African cities.
Metro Africa Xpress Inc (MAX), a clean energy transportation startup, has secured $31 million in Series B funding, and plans to use the funding to expand to more African markets beyond its home country, Nigeria.
MAX which plans to assemble electric-powered motorbikes in the future, said that funding will also be directed towards providing vehicle financing credit to over 100,000 drivers in the next two years.
MAX has plans to assemble electric two and three wheelers in the country as part of its mission to make mobility safe, affordable, accessible.
“It is another milestone in our journey to make mobility safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable by deploying high-performance technologies and operators,” said MAX co-founder and CEO Adetayo Bamiduro.
“The investment will enable us to transform the lives of hundreds of thousands of drivers across the continent, accelerate international expansion and continue our pioneering initiatives in the mobility space.”
MAX is targeting nearby Ghana in West Africa and the Arab republic of Egypt in North Africa by the end of the first quarter of 2022.
More African countries in the Eastern and Southern parts of the continent will follow thereafter, the company says.
MAX began in 2015 as an ride-hailing app for ordering motorcycles. This was necessary at the time as quick means of commuting in the busy streets of Lagos.
However, a change in policy by the state government banning the use of motorcylces for transport on major roads in Lagos propelled a diversification of MAX’s operations.
In 2018, the tech company introduced vehicle financing for commercial transportation, and expanded beyond Lagos into SouthWest states.
“We spent time understanding drivers’ operations and it became apparent to us that most of them don’t own the vehicles they use,” said Chief Financial Officer for MAX, Guy-Bertrand Njoya.
“It became clear that the fundamental issue that drivers face is consistent access to vehicles.
“And that is when we realized that if we are to be successful at solving the challenge of mobility across the continent, we have to first address the issue of vehicle access.”
Global private equity platform, Lightrock, co-led the latest round of funding with UAE-based international venture capital firm, Global Ventures.
Other firms that participated in the round are existing investors Novastar Ventures and Proparco, the French development finance institution, through their Digital Africa initiative.
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