Bolt SA's Low-Cost Ride Plug MNC Taps USD 10 M—With Moove’s Backer Behind The Wheel

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Bolt SA’s Low-Cost Ride Plug MNC Taps USD 10 M—With Moove’s Backer Behind The Wheel

MyNextCar (MNC), a key fleet enabler for Bolt in South Africa, has raised USD 10 M in its first institutional funding round—capital that could reshape the country’s low-cost ride-hailing landscape.

The investment, led by London-based Emso Asset Management with backing from Bolt, Assemble Capital, and E2 Investments, will help MNC scale its operations and roll out 1,500 new vehicles under Bolt Lite, a budget-focused category powered by the compact Bajaj Qute.

For Bolt and its partners, it’s a bet on a model that brings affordability, accessibility, and local relevance to South Africa’s mobility market.

Despite the success of Bolt Lite in pilot phases, the journey hasn’t been frictionless. Violent resistance from traditional taxi operators and illegal vehicle impoundments have made lenders wary.

This new funding signals renewed confidence in MNC’s ability to overcome those headwinds and validate an alternative future for urban transport.

To date, MNC has enabled over 700 drivers to earn on Bolt’s platform, with 43% of them being youth and 4% being women.

That demographic tilt is no coincidence. Both Bolt and MNC frame their partnership as part of a broader play to combat youth unemployment and expand financial inclusion via asset-light vehicle access. “This isn’t just about adding cars, it’s about changing lives,” a company spokesperson said.

The investment is also a vote of confidence from Emso, whose previous backing of Moove, a vehicle-financing startup for ride-hailing drivers, signals a growing interest in Africa’s mobility-fintech intersection. E2 Investments’ participation reinforces its impact-driven mandate to fund ventures that generate jobs in underserved segments.

By backing a business model built on small vehicles, lean economics, and broad access, the funders are effectively helping Bolt cement its presence in South Africa’s price-sensitive transport market.

With competition heating up and regulatory tensions still simmering, MNC’s next phase will test whether scale, impact, and margins can co-exist in the country’s rapidly evolving ride-hailing economy.