Treepz Raises $2.8M to Make Public Transportation Safer Across Africa

Treepz, a transportation startup based in Ontario, has raised $2.8 million in seed funding to expand across Africa while digitizing the public transportation system in the region.

The funding round counted with participation from firms like Japanese VC, Uncovered Fund, Blanford Capital, Jedar Capital, and Jonomi Capital. The capital brings the total funding raised by Treepz to $3.1 million. Takuma Terakubo, CEO & General Partner of Uncovered Fund Inc, referred to the round by stating:

“Treepz has impressed us with their remarkable traction in the latter part of the year and are poised for even further expansion, particularly through strategic partnerships. Treepz is building the most important mobility infrastructure in Africa’s megacities. The development of public transportation is essential in African countries where urbanization is advancing. We look forward to their building the infrastructure for people’s mobility through digital value. As a Japanese VC who places importance on the mobility industry, we would like to provide a lot of value to them.”

Treepz was founded in 2019 with the mission to make shared mobility easier while empowering road transportation systems across Africa. The platform developed by the startup aggregates more than 21 bus travel companies, allowing users to access the service more easily and at a lower cost.

The news of the funding round was accompanied by the acquisition of Ugabus, a startup founded in 2016 that has 70% of all East African bus operators in the region. Onyeka Akumah, CEO and Co-founder of Treepz, said about the acquisition:

“Everyone at Treepz is excited to welcome the team at Ugabus to the Treepz Family. This has been in the works for sometime, along with our deal that happened in Ghana a few months ago, and so, we are really happy about closing the deal successfully. East Africa is an exciting target for Treepz and from Uganda, we would work with this new team led by Hakiza in Uganda to explore our growth plans across the neighbouring countries as we aim towards building the largest shared mobility platform in sub-saharan Africa.”

With its presence in Nigeria, Ghana, and Uganda, Treepz is continuing to improve the lives of millions while also becoming one of the leading mobility startups in the region. The startup is also working on creating new relationships with lñocal governments, facilitating the digitization of transportation at a faster rate.