Tech in Africa
MENA mass transit and mobility solutions provider Swvl has announced plans of acquiring a controlling interest in Shotl, a mass transit platform partnering with corporations and municipalities to provide on-demand bus and van services across LATAM, Europe, and APAC – resulting in the optimizing public transportation systems and decreasing dependence on other costly private options. Both company missions believe that providing accessible and equitable mobility solutions is a pathway to socio-economic empowerment.
Shotl operates in 22 cities across 10 countries among them Brazil, Japan, and the EU. Thus far the platform has received over 350,000 bookings – over 10% market share in Europe. Shotl looks to solve challenges posed by transportation gaps in cities, suburbs, and campuses through its on-demand platform that offers simplicity, flexibility, and sustainability. Shotl partners with municipalities, governments, and companies to access populations residing in low-density areas and are mostly underserved by the current mass transit and ride-sharing options.
In the press release, Mostafa Kandil, Swvl’s founder and CEO said that both Shotl and Swvl’s vision share similarities in the “ urgent need to transform traditional public transportation to make it more accessible, convenient and sustainable.”
Shotl will now serve as Dubai-based Swvl’s European hub. The Barcelona-based company operates in 8 European countries namely, Germany, Spain, UK, Italy, France, Switzerland, Finland, and Portugal. It was only recently that Swvl closed an IPO after entering a business arrangement with Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital.
