BasiGo, the Nairobi-headquartered electric bus company, has closed a $38 million round to fund a major expansion of its fleet and geographic footprint, according to The Kenyan Wallstreet. The raise marks one of the largest single investments in electric public transit on the continent and signals growing institutional appetite for clean-mobility infrastructure in African cities.
BasiGo has built its model around a pay-as-you-go financing structure for matatu and bus operators, allowing fleet owners to acquire electric buses without the prohibitive upfront capital cost that has historically kept combustion-engine vehicles dominant. The company partners with existing Kenyan route operators, effectively embedding its buses into established transit networks rather than attempting to build parallel systems from scratch — a pragmatic approach that has allowed faster deployment.
The Kenyan urban transport market is substantial: Nairobi alone moves an estimated four million passengers daily through a largely informal matatu network. Diesel fuel costs and vehicle maintenance represent the two largest operating expenses for fleet owners, and BasiGo's pitch — lower per-kilometre running costs from electric drivetrains — addresses both pain points directly. The $38 million raise will likely accelerate bus procurement and deepen financing partnerships with local operators and banks.
The round arrives at a moment when East Africa is emerging as a proving ground for electric mobility at scale. BasiGo's raise is the most prominent signal yet that investors believe the unit economics are viable beyond pilots and demonstration fleets. How the company deploys this capital — whether into expanded manufacturing or assembly partnerships, more aggressive route coverage in Nairobi, or early moves into secondary Kenyan cities and neighbouring markets — will determine whether $38 million translates into durable market leadership or simply a better-capitalised experiment.
In a separate but thematically linked development also reported by The Kenyan Wallstreet, cross-border payments infrastructure firm Conduit has raised $6 million from Helios Investment Partners and used the occasion to appoint a Kenyan executive to lead its Africa expansion. The Helios backing — from one of the continent's most established Africa-focused private equity and growth-capital firms — lends the raise credibility beyond its headline size.
Conduit's hire of a Kenyan country or regional lead reflects a broader pattern among fintech infrastructure players: building local commercial and regulatory relationships is as capital-intensive, in operational terms, as building the technology itself. Helios, which manages multiple funds with deep exposure across African financial services, telecommunications, and energy, brings a network that Conduit will need as it navigates central bank licensing and banking-sector partnerships market by market.
Taken together, the two deals — $44 million combined — underscore Kenya's continued position as the default entry point for startups targeting East and broader sub-Saharan Africa. Nairobi offers a relatively mature startup ecosystem, English-language regulatory environment, and a consumer base experienced with mobile-first financial and transport services. Both BasiGo and Conduit are betting that cracking Kenya at scale is the prerequisite for any serious continental play.
Why it matters: For operators, investors, and policymakers watching African mobility and fintech infrastructure, BasiGo's $38 million raise sets a new capital benchmark for electric transit on the continent — and Conduit's Helios-backed $6 million round confirms that payments infrastructure connecting African corridors remains an active, institution-grade investment thesis.