Yobante Express, a Senegalese delivery business that connects local couriers with local commerce to optimize domestic, cross-border, and last-mile delivery, has raised a US$1.2 million funding to continue its rapid expansion.
Grenfell Holdings, Launch Africa Ventures, R-Ventures, Libertad via its investment unit Aguila Investments, and a pool of high-profile local and international angel investors are among the investors.
Yobante Express, which launched in November 2018, is a web and mobile platform that leverages gig economy, independent, and casual couriers inside a resilient mesh network of relay points to deliver items twice as fast and 40% more economically than existing options.
Oumar Basse, the startup’s co-founder, and CEO stated the company had an annual revenue run rate of US$8 million and handled 1.2 million parcels.
“By 2021, we expect to transport 2 million parcels,” he said. “This bridge round will be used to support the implementation of the network in South Africa and Nigeria, including operations, the development of the network of relay points and carriers, and customer acquisition.”
The new funds will be used to help the business gain traction in South Africa and Nigeria.
Yobante Express hopes to raise a Series A funding later this year to expand into nations around all of its present stations.
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