Back to the complete issue
Monday, 10 June 2019

Swvl announces expansion into Nigeria in July

STARTUP WATCH- Swvl says it will expand into Nigeria in July: Egyptian transportation startup Swvl has announced that it is expanding into Nigeria, with initial plans to launch 50 buses in Lagos by mid-July, MENAbytes reports. The mass transit app listed the role of Country General Manager for Nigeria last week, calling for an experienced leader “to continue the growth of Swvl in Lagos and in other Nigerian cities.” Swvl entred Kenya earlier this year, but reports it would move from there into neighboring Uganda remain unconfirmed. Swvl has for some time set its sights on expansion beyond MENA, with CEO Mostafa Kandil say last year that he planned to launch in Manila in 1Q2019 and then expand throughout Southeast Asia to reach seven megacities by the end of 2019.

Competing with the homegrown apps: Swvl will face both direct and indirect competition in Nigeria, with several homegrown and international ride-hailing apps appearing in the local market during recent years. Kandil, however, appears sanguine in the face of competition, announcing earlier this year that the company had seen a fourfold growth in signups since the launch of Uber Bus in Cairo, and pointing out that in emerging markets “one single player is not enough to build the network.”

Enterprise is a daily publication of Enterprise Ventures LLC, an Egyptian limited liability company (commercial register 83594), and a subsidiary of Inktank Communications. Summaries are intended for guidance only and are provided on an as-is basis; kindly refer to the source article in its original language prior to undertaking any action. Neither Enterprise Ventures nor its staff assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, whether in the form of summaries or analysis. © 2022 Enterprise Ventures LLC.

Enterprise is available without charge thanks to the generous support of HSBC Egypt (tax ID: 204-901-715), the leading corporate and retail lender in Egypt; EFG Hermes (tax ID: 200-178-385), the leading financial services corporation in frontier emerging markets; SODIC (tax ID: 212-168-002), a leading Egyptian real estate developer; SomaBay (tax ID: 204-903-300), our Red Sea holiday partner; Infinity (tax ID: 474-939-359), the ultimate way to power cities, industries, and homes directly from nature right here in Egypt; CIRA (tax ID: 200-069-608), the leading providers of K-12 and higher level education in Egypt; Orascom Construction (tax ID: 229-988-806), the leading construction and engineering company building infrastructure in Egypt and abroad; Moharram & Partners (tax ID: 616-112-459), the leading public policy and government affairs partner; Palm Hills Developments (tax ID: 432-737-014), a leading developer of commercial and residential properties; Mashreq (tax ID: 204-898-862), the MENA region’s leading homegrown personal and digital bank; Industrial Development Group (IDG) (tax ID:266-965-253), the leading builder of industrial parks in Egypt; Hassan Allam Properties (tax ID:  553-096-567), one of Egypt’s most prominent and leading builders; and Saleh, Barsoum & Abdel Aziz (tax ID: 220-002-827), the leading audit, tax and accounting firm in Egypt.