$9 M debt facility secured by Rwandan electric motorcycle startup Ampersand

The US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has granted Ampersand, a Rwanda-based electric motorbike startup, a $9 million financing facility to expand its operations in Rwanda and Kenya.

Ampersand, which began commercial operations in May 2019, assembles and finances electric motorbikes that are less expensive to acquire and run and outperform the five million petrol motorcycle taxis in use across East Africa.

The network of battery swap stations and fleet of batteries that Ampersand creates and runs are at the heart of its business, allowing drivers to switch batteries faster than they can fill up their gas tank and shielding car owners from the hefty upfront cost of a lithium battery pack.

Ampersand’s crew has done over 50,000 battery swaps since its commercial launch in May 2019, powering its fleet of 56 drivers for over two million kilometres. The firm has been seeking funds to help it expand, and early this year the Ecosystem Integrity Fund (EIF) and TotalEnergies invested $4 million in it.

With US $9 million loan from the DFC, Ampersand will be able to increase the number of electric bikes on the road in Rwanda and Kenya to several thousand by the end of 2022. The loan is part of DFC’s Portfolio for Impact and Innovation (PI2) project, which supports the company’s commitment to the US Energy Compact and its goal of allocating one-third of its assets to climate change by 2023.

“We’re thrilled to have DFC on board with this historic investment, which is building momentum to electrify all of East Africa’s five million motorcycle taxis by 2030. DFC’s support underlines the viability and investability of electric two-wheelers for mass-market customers in the Global South, and the importance of this market to reaching net zero. On the eve of COP26 in Glasgow, we believe bolder, fast-moving, and innovative funds like PI² are urgently needed,” said Josh Whale, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Ampersand.

“DFC is proud to support Ampersand in their important and innovative work bringing e-mobility and electric motorcycles to Rwanda and Kenya,” said DFC’s chief climate officer Jake Levine. “DFC is focused on making impactful investments in developing countries that will help communities progress and grow while simultaneously building resilience and prosperity for a clean energy future — this investment and the incredible growth that Ampersand has demonstrated in the market represents a great step in that direction.”