INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Jake BrightContributorJake Bright is a writer and author in New York City
He is co-author of The Next Africa. More posts by this contributorHarley-Davidson to expand EV lineup, may include scooters,
bicyclesSokowatch closes $2 million seed round to modernize Africa B2B retailB2B e-commerce companySokowatchclosed a $2 million seed
investment led by4DX Ventures
Others to join the round were Village Global, Lynett Capital, Golden Palm Investments and OutlierzVentures.The Kenya-basedcompany aims to
shake up the supply chain market for Africa informal retailers.Sokowatch platform connects Africa informal retail stores directly to local
and multi-national suppliers — such as Unilever and Proctor and Gamble — by digitizing orders, delivery and payments with the aim of
reducing costs and increasing profit margins.&With both manufacturers and the small shops, we&re becoming the connective layer between them,
where previously you had multiple layers of middle-men from distributors, sub-distributors, to wholesalers,& Sokowatch founder and CEO
Daniel Yu toldTechCrunch.&The cost of sourcing goods right now…we estimate we&re cutting that cost by about 20 percent [for] these
shopkeepers,& he said.&There are millions of informal stores across Africa cities selling hundreds of billions worth of consumer goods every
year,&said Yu.These stores can use Sokowatch app on mobile phones to buy wares directly from large suppliers, arrange for transport and make
&Ordering on SMS or Android gets you free delivery of products to your store, on average, in about two hours,& said Yu.Sokowatch generates
revenues by earning &a margin on the goods that we&re selling to shopkeepers,& said Yu
On the supplier side, they also benefit from &aggregating demand…and getting bulk deals on the products that we distribute.&The company
recently launched a line of credit product to extend working capital loans to platform clients
With the $2 million round, Sokowatch — which currently operates in Kenya and Tanzania — plans to &expand to new markets in East Africa,
as well as pilot additional value add services to the shops,& said Yu.MallforAfricaand DHL launchedMarketPlaceAfrica.com: a global
e-commerce site for select African artisans to sell wares to buyers in any of DHL 220 delivery countries.The site will prioritize fashion
items — clothing, bags, jewelry, footwear and personal care — and crafts, such as pictures and carvings
MallforAfrica is vetting sellers for MarketPlace Africaonlineand through theAfrica Made Product Standardsassociation (AMPS), to verify
made-in-Africa status and merchandise quality.&We&re starting off in Nigeria and then we&ll open in Kenya, Rwanda and the rest of Africa,
utilizing DHL massive network,& MallforAfrica CEO Chris Folayan told TechCrunch about where the goods will be sourced
&People all around the world can buy from African artisans online, that the goal,& Folayan toldTechCrunch.Current listed designer products
include handbags fromChinwe Ezenwaand Tash women outfits by Tasha Goodwin.In addition to DHL for shipping, MarketPlace Africa will utilize
MallforAfrica e-commerce infrastructure.The startup was founded in 2011 to solve challenges global consumer goods companies face when
entering Africa.French President Emmanuel Macronunveiled a $76 million African startup fundat VivaTech 2018 and TechCrunch paid a visit to
theFrench Development Agency(AFD) — which will administer the new fund — to get details on how it will work.The $76 million (or€65
million) will divvy up into three parts, AFD Digital Task Team LeaderChristine Hatold TechCrunch.&There are €10 million [$11.7 million]
for technical assistance to support the African ecosystem… €5 million will be available as interest-free loans to high-potential,
pre-seed startups…and…€50 million [$58 million] will be for equity-based investments in series A to C startups,& explained Ha during a
meeting in Paris.The technical assistance will distribute in the form of grants to accelerators, hubs, incubators and coding programs
The pre-seed startup loans will issue in amounts up to $100,000 &as early, early funding to allow entrepreneurs to prototype, launch and
experiment,& said Ha.The $58 million in VC startup funding will be administered throughProparco, a development finance institution —
orDFI— partially owned by the AFD
&Proparco will take equity stakes, and will be a limited partner when investing in VC funds,& said Ha.Startups from all African countries
can apply for a piece of the $58 million by contacting any ofProparco Africa offices.The $11.7 million technical assistance and $5.8 million
loan portions of France new fund will be available starting in 2019
On implementation, AFD is still &reviewing several options…such as relying on local actors through [France&s] Digital Africa platform,&
President Macron followed up the Africa fund announcement with atrip to Nigerialast month.Nigerian logistics startupKobo360was accepted into
Y Combinator 2018 class and gained some working capital in the form of $1.2 million in pre-seed funding led byWestern Technology
Investment.The startup — with anUber -like app that connects Nigerian truckers to companies with freight needs — will use the funds to
pay drivers online immediately after successful hauls.Kobo360 is also launching the Kobo Wealth Investment Network, or KoboWIN — a
crowd-invest, vehicle financing program
Through it, Kobo drivers can finance new trucks through citizen investors and pay them back directly (with interest) over a 60-month
period.On Kobo360 utility, &We give drivers the demand and technology to power their businesses,& CEO Obi Ozortold TechCrunch
&An average trucker will make $3,500 a month with our app
That middle class territory in Nigeria.&Kobo360 has served 324 businesses, aggregated a fleet of 5,480 drivers and moved 37.6 million
kilograms of cargo since 2017, per company stats
Top clients include Honeywell,Olam, Unilever and DHL.Ozor thinks the startup asset-free, digital platform and business model can outpace
traditional long-haul 3PL providers in Nigeria by handling more volume at cheaper prices.&Logistics in Nigeria have been priced based on the
assumption drivers are going to run empty on the way back…When we now match freight with return trips, prices crash.&Kobo360 will expand
in Togo, Ghana, Cote D&Ivoire and Senegal.[PHOTO: BFX.LAGOS]And finally, applications are open for TechCrunch Startup Battlefield Africa, to
be held in Lagos, Nigeria, December 11
Early-stage African startups have untilSeptember 3to apply here.More Africa Related Stories @TechCrunch·CowryWise micro-savings service
opens high-yield government bonds to everyday NigeriansAfrican Tech Around the Net·More Than Half of Sub-Saharan Africa to Be Connected to
Mobile by 2025, Finds New GSMA Study
·Ethiopia&sGebeyaacquires Coders4Africa to accelerate its growth
·Rwanda, Andela partner to launch
pan-African tech hub in Kigali
·Google free public Wi-Fi initiative expanded to Africa
·Accounteer wins 2018 MEST Entrepreneur
challenge
·SafeBoda completes expansion to Kenya, now live in Nairobi
·Uganda government sued over social media tax
