Investor Updates: February 3 2022 - Kenya’s Lami acquires Bluewave insurtech

Kenya’s Lami acquires Bluewave insurtech

Highlights

• Kenyan insurtech startup Lami Technologies has acquired Bluewave Insurance Agency for an undisclosed amount as it seeks to make insurance covers accessible to more people across Africa.
• Bluewave insurance, also a Kenyan startup, was founded by Adelaide Odhiambo, who now joins Lami as the head of commercial partnerships. 
• Since its launch in 2016, Bluewave has built an online platform that allows clients to access micro-insurance products through diverse channels. The deal will see Lami integrate Bluewave’s technology into its core platform further enhancing its B2B2C capabilities.

Source: TechCrunch

Our Takeaway

Africa has an ever-growing need for innovative insurance solutions to address the significant lack of coverage on the continent. As of 2018, the insurance penetration rate in Africa stood at a meager 1.12% or 3% with South Africa. More so, the deal between Lami and Bluewave adds to a growing list of mergers and acquisitions involving African startups, which have become prominent over the past year, an indication of a maturing ecosystem.

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Nigerian mobility fintech Moove gets $10m debt facility

Highlights

• Nigerian mobility fintech startup Moove, Uber’s exclusive vehicle financing, and vehicle supply partner in Sub-Saharan Africa, has secured $10 million in debt financing to expand across key markets.
• Founded in 2019 by Ladi Delano and Jide Odunsi, Moove is democratizing vehicle ownership in Africa by providing revenue-based vehicle financing to mobility entrepreneurs.
• Moove sells customers new vehicles, financing up to 95% of the purchase, and embeds its alternative credit-scoring technology onto ride-hailing and e-logistics platforms, allowing access to proprietary performance and revenue analytics of mobility entrepreneurs to underwrite loans.

Source: Disrupt Africa

Our Takeaway

In Africa, the market opportunity for vehicle financing is huge. Despite having a population of more than 1 billion people, 43% of them urban dwellers, the continent recorded less than 1 million total new vehicle sales in 2019, a far cry in comparison to 17 million in the U.S. alone. Moove currently operates in six cities across Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, and Kenya, with plans to expand further across the continent.

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Kenya’s Afya Rekod gets $2m to digitize health records with blockchain

Highlights

• Afya Rekod, a Kenyan-based health data startup, has raised $2million in seed funding, led by Mac Venture Capital, a US-based venture capital firm.
• The startup’s decentralized platform, built on blockchain, allows both patients and health facilities to capture, store and access the mobility of the patients’ health records.
• Amidst the pandemic outbreak, health data has become one of the most urgent issues for health management globally. Since its launch in April 2020, Afya Rekod has seen interest from various health parties in Africa, Europe, Asia, and the United States increase significantly.

Source: African Business

Our Takeaway

Afya Rekod’s solution is one of many innovative ways the emerging blockchain technology is being used in Africa, apart from finance, and is a much-needed one. On the continent, most health centers and hospitals still largely rely on pen and paper to record and keep health-related information, which is often locked away in files and storage rooms. Also, the fundraising comes at a time when healthcare startups are increasingly getting investors’ attention.