MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BII Lending $20m to Moove, Financier of Ride-hailing, Delivery Vehicles in Africa

British International Investment (BII), the UK government’s development finance institution, recently announced a four-year structured debt package of USD 20 million for Moove, a Nigeria-based financial technology (fintech) firm that helps drivers in Africa acquire motorcycles, cars and trucks to work for passenger and delivery driving services. Moove plans to use the proceeds to buy fuel-efficient cars for drivers in Nigeria to acquire through payments made over periods of up to four years. Moove’s vehicle financing packages include gasoline, insurance, maintenance, mobile phone service and dashboard cameras. Moove drivers work with ride-hailing and delivery services such as Lori, Sendy and Uber.

BII CEO Nick O’Donohoe stated, “I am delighted that not only will BII’s investment help to create jobs and provide entrepreneurial self-starters with the means to own their vehicles, but Moove’s clear focus on gender diversity will foster inclusive economic opportunities for women, both within the company’s workforce and among its drivers.”

Founded in 2002, Moove provides access to vehicle financing in six African countries and is in the process of expanding elsewhere in Africa as well as to India, UAE and the UK. As of July 2022, Moove drivers have completed 6.2 million passenger rides.

Established in 1948 and formerly known as the Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC) Group, BII issues debt, equity and indirect investments with the aim of fostering growth in “sustainable” businesses to raise living standards in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean. The institution reports total assets of GBP 7.5 billion (USD 9.0 billion) as of June 2022.

By Sheen Gupta, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

BII press release
https://www.bii.co.uk/en/news-insight/news/british-international-investment-launches-new-name-in-nigeria-with-us-20m-commitment-to-mobility-fintech-moove/

Moove homepage
https://www.moove.io

BII homepage
https://www.bii.co.uk

Previous MicroCapital article on BII
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-bii-investing-75m-in-msme-funders-via-symbiotics-to-enable-green-projects-in-africa-asia/

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