The Kenyan company Little has big plans for expansion in Africa

NAIROBI (Reuters) – Kenya 's Little Company will expand into Tanzania and Ghana by May and plans to raise about $ 50 million more from investors, announced Friday. General manager.

Little, which competes with global players Uber and Taxify in Kenya, is valued at between $ 70 and $ 75 million, said chief executive Kamal Budhabhatti, a minnug over rivals, but aims to expand in Africa .

The company will offer treks to Tanzania's commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, starting next week and plans to launch in Accra by May, Budhabhatti added, strengthening operations in Kenya, Uganda and in Zambia.

"We want to enter many more countries than we are in the moment," Budhabhatti said.

He added that Little was telling investors to raise about $ 50 million of Series A financing, the funding received when a new company opens up for the first time to outside investors. Its goal is to finalize it by mid-2019.

"We meet some investors, both on the mainland and in Silicon Valley. The interest is there, "he said, adding that new funds would be used to develop the technology and expand to more countries. He did not name potential investors.

Without the deep pockets of his hilarious rivals in the area, Little attracted drivers by encouraging them to offer extra services to earn money, said Budhabhatti.

"Our drivers are agents, they can sell you insurance, they can sell antenna time (mobile), they can pay electricity bills and / or water, they can do all those little things that increase their income, "he said.

Little, who has established a marketing partnership with Safaricom, Kenya's largest mobile operator, is also available for Kenyan customers who do not have a smartphone.

The company has worked with mobile operators to put in place a code to locate the pbadenger. "About 20% of our trips come from phones other than smartphones," Budhabhatti said.

The company, which started in 2016, has 10,000 registered drivers in Nairobi, of which about 60% are active, and more than one million users on its platform in all markets, including over 60 percent in Kenya, he said.

Uber, which has been operating in Kenya for four years, has 6,000 active drivers.

Little started a bus service in Nairobi in January, in addition to his motorcycle taxi service and motorcycle taxi service, known in Kenya as "boda boda". He is also looking into a delivery service.