Plentywaka acquires Stabus

A mobility startup firm, Plentywaka has acquired Stabus, one of Ghana’s leading mobility start-up to expand its operations on the continent.

It come at a time when the country and the continent's public transportation sector is gradually evolving with the emergence of new technology-driven modes of transportation.

With the start of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA), movement on the continent is likely to see a significant increase and Plentywaka is ready to take advantage.

The first Country Manager of Plentywaka Ghana, Isidore Kpotufe, in a statement issued in Accra, observed that “With Plentywaka Ghana, we have an even bigger platform to do more: more buses, more routes and the offer of superior customer experience to our cherished users.

"We will revamp our daily commuter bus service, now called Dailywaka, and deepen our partnerships with corporate clients as well; all this will be done in the most efficient, convenient and environmentally-friendly manner.”

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Mobility start-up

The Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Plentywaka, Onyeka Akumah, said, “Plentywaka’s acquisition of Stabus is a firm statement about our commitment to grow and build the largest shared mobility startup in Africa, one country at a time.

"Isidore is a brilliant entrepreneur and we are excited about having him and his team execute our plans for the Ghanaian market as Plentywaka Ghana’s operations commence on the September 16 in Accra.”

He added that, in addition to the work in Ghana, the company was also happy about the progress made in Nigeria as well to scale Dailywaka service that provides bus-stop to bus-stop transportation service for thousands of commuters.

“Today, we have moved close to half a million people and that’s a credit to the effort of my team, our heroes (a term used to describe Plentywaka drivers) and our investors who continue to believe and support our growth with their investments.

"With our Travelwaka service, we have been able to cater for interstate travellers across 21 cities in Nigeria and we are looking to expand to more cities as new bus partners sign up with us,” he said.

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Techstars funding

Plentywaka’s acquisition of Stabus comes in the wake of the announcement of its seed round of $1.2 million, only two months after successfully ending the Techstars Toronto Accelerator Program in July 2021.

This investment in Plentywaka attracted a wide range of investors from Canada, the United States, China and Nigeria. The Xchange, a Toronto based fund, led this seed round, while Techstars followed on their previous investment in Plentywaka to participate in the round as well.

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Other investors include SOSV, the most active VC globally in the angel/seed deal type and ShockVentures, a VC from the United States.

Nigerian investment firms that participated in the round include Argentil Capital Partners and ODBA & Co Ventures, an early-stage investor in Kuda Bank.

There were also angel investors from Canada, the US and Africa who also participated in the seed round to give Plentywaka the much-needed boost to continue its impressive growth.