Nairobi-Based Marketplace and Logistics Startup Bwala Secures Bridge Round

2017-founded marketplace and logistics startup Bwala has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from seasoned Silicon Valley angel Investor Justin Caldbeck.

Cadbeck who reportedly invested in his personal capacity will be joining the Bwala team as a board member. His joining of the team comes hot on heels following Bwala’s official announcement that they are kick starting operations in Uganda.

Bwala Africa Logistics is an upcoming market crowd-sourcing logistics marketplace. It employs the use of its network to help companies and individuals manage their fleet and assets throughout their supply chains via their web and Apps. They help brands deliver their merchandise to customers.

The Nairobi-based startup would use the investment from Caldbeck to enrich its technology platform and further heighten its operations in Kenya and Uganda.

“I would like to officially welcome San Francisco based Investor and entrepreneur Justin Caldbeck to Bwala Africa as a Board Member. Justin was previously Co-Founder of Binary Capital and a former partner at Lightspeed Ventures,” said Bwala Africa’s founder and CEO Kennedy Nyabwala. The deal was made known by a daily, Techmoran in an article they published yesterday.

“Bwala will be Justin’s first African investment. It is a great honour and opportunity to bring his vast experience and knowledge to our board and be a part of our pan-African expansion journey. We do look forward to working with Justin, learning and growing the Bwala SaaS last mile technology across various African markets,” added Kennedy.

The CEO revealed that for a short period Bwala has been in operation in Uganda, they have landed significant partnerships with the country’s top brands, and currently, they have fulfilled over 100 deliveries.

In September 2018, the logistics marketplace secured a USD 238K debt financing from South African-based bank CFC Stanbic to meet the rising demand for last mile fleet connectivity. The funding saw the firm roll out 8 new trucks from ISUZU East Africa, four directly funded by CFC.

The startup last year announced a partnership with Kenyan retail stores: Copia, Naivas, and Jumia to power their last mile deliveries.

Featured Image courtesy: Bwala