Mr Viral
Enakl, a Moroccan and French mobility startup that offers bus-sharing services, has raised $1.4 million in a pre-seed funding round. The company will use the funding to improve its technology and expand into other cities in the North African country and across Africa.
The round was led by Catalyst Fund, with participation from Renew Capital, Digital Africa, Station F, and 15 other angel investors.
“This funding allows us to deepen our impact in Casablanca, expand our reach, and accelerate the development of our technology,“ said Samir Bennani, Enakl’s co-founder and CEO.
Founded in 2023 by Samir Bennani and Charles Pommarede, the e-mobility startup offers a pre-planned commuting service that allows users to book shared rides on mini-buses that follow fixed routes. Enakl’s bus-sharing service targets Morocco’s urban cities where commuters face overcrowded buses and inconsistent schedules.
The bus-sharing business model will limit the number of daily commuters dependent on the public bus rapid transit (BRT) system, leading to fewer vehicles on the road. The company seeks to address the need for sustainable and efficient public transportation in Morocco’s growing urban cities.
Casablanca, one of the busiest cities, has a BRT system with average wait times of fifteen minutes during peak hours which is a problem for commuters who want to move around quickly. Enakl’s pre-planning feature allows timely pickup for these commuters.
“We invested in Enakl because they’re transforming urban transit in Africa with a scalable, green solution. By reducing emissions and congestion through tech-driven, shared transport, Enakl addresses urbanisation’s challenges,” said Maxime Bayen, Operating Partner at Catalyst Fund.
With Morocco’s relatively small ride-sharing market, valued at $4.15 million in 2024, Enakl has a chance to grow and capture market share. After operating for 14 months, the mobility startup claims it manages over 15,000 ride bookings monthly and grows this number by one-fifth monthly.
Aside from the public transport sector, Enakl faces competition from ride-hailing companies like Careem and Heetch operating in Morocco. While the ride-hailing services focus on offering private trips, Enakl helps users save cost on transport fares while providing the comfort of a private trip.
“We recognise the problem Enakl is trying to solve in many of the cities we work in across Africa, and feel strongly that the collective transportation solutions developed by Enakl are key to solving these challenges,” said Adam Abate, Renew Capital CEO.
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