Egyptian bus-hailing service Swvl plans to inject $15 million (Ksh 1.5 billion) into its Kenyan operations to improving its current operations.
Swvl founded by three young Egyptian entrepreneurs: Mostafa Kandil, the CEO, Mahmoud Nouh, the COO and Ahmed Sabbah, the CTO.
Kandil made the announcement in Nairobi stating that they are excited to provide a solution that makes the lives of Kenyans easier. “Kenya is a market with a need for a stable solution for the perennial traffic snarl-ups and SWVL believes that we can be of great benefit to the local consumer and the transport sector as a whole,” said Mr. Kandil.
Apart from introducing new routes, the company will also use the money to expand its fleet, offering employment opportunities to Kenyans.
“I believe the potential for growth and value creation is tremendous and given the different entities providing varied solutions, we are looking to fill a gap that has yet to be sufficiently covered by what is already available. That is what has prompted us to expand our route offering to match the convenience of ride-hailing services but at the same time matching the capacity provided by the traditional matatu industry for an even larger customer base than we have before,” said Shivachi Muleji, SWVL General Manager for Kenya.
The company currently operates in Nairobi and it has announced that it will launch more routes in the capital city. When they launched in Kenya in February 2019, SWVL was operating on four routes and has over the last six months since increased the routes to fifty-five.
SWVL recently received $42 million (Ksh. 4.2 billion) Series B-2 funding led by BECO Capital and Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures. This increased the start-up’s valuation to $150 million (Ksh. 15 billion).
How can you book a ride?
All you have to do is download the app from Google Play Store or Apple’s App Store. You can explore the existing routes or enter your pickup and drop-off locations.
The app shows the estimated walking time to the pickup station, where the bus will pick you at a designated time. The bus will drop you off at your selected drop-off station after which you have to walk towards your final destination point.
A live tracking option is available, through which you can see the location of the booked vehicle and reach your chosen pickup point on time.
