News
OPay sends Uber, Bolt, Little into jitters as it raises $120m, launches Ocar in Nigeria, others
OPay, Opera’s fintech platform for almost everything in Nigeria, has raised a $120m Series B round to expand its product portfolio as well as expand across Africa.
OPay’s Series B was led by Chinese investors Meituan-Dianping, GaoRong, Source Code Capital, Softbank Asia, BAI, Redpoint, IDG Capital, Sequoia China and GSR Ventures according to a report by TechCrunch.
OPay will use the funds to scale its operations in Nigeria and launch its services in Kenya, Ghana and South Africa. The firm in June raised $50 million to double down on Nigeria.
“OPay will facilitate the people in Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, Kenya and other African countries with the best fintech ecosystem. We see ourselves as a key contributor to helping local businesses thrive,” Opera CEO and OPay Chairman Yahui Zhou, said in a statement to TechCrunch.
After the raise, Opay has launched OCar, an Uber and Bolt killer starting in Lagos, Owerri, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Benin adding to its OBus, ORide, OFood, OList, OTrike and OLeads.
OPay is not done yet and expects more products to be launched soon. it’s latest investor Meituan-Dianping is the master protagonist in OPay’s future. The apps offered by Meituan Dianping cover a huge range of services from restaurant reviews and listings to “travel-life” services ranging from food, travel essentials, and leisure products. Meituan Dianping runs Meituan Waimai (food delivery), Maoyan (cinema tickets, Dazhong Dianping (Reviews/Coupons), Meituan (Coupons/Group Buying). The everything app offers everything from information on cosmetic surgery to hotel bookings and that’s the Chinese game needed in Africa.
Like TechMoran reported earlier, OPay wants to be used for almost everything in Nigeria and loans were just a start. With the launch of ORide, the firm sits at the centre of Africa’s most used transportation system, the motorcycle, which is also affordable compared to cars. The motorcycle makes Africa’s broken transport system accessible and has been used as a natural cure to traffic jams in Lagos, Nigeria and Nairobi, Kenya. In both Nairobi and Lagos, Traffic jams cost businesses millions of dollars each year and entrepreneurs want to solve that menace using motorcycles.
The Day we’ve all been waiting for is finally here! ??
OCar has arrived! ?
Go anywhere with OCar in Lagos, Owerri, PH, Abuja, Benin, Kaduna, Abeokuta & Ibadan for just 200 Naira.
Now, you can enjoy safe, affordable & comfortable rides at the tap of a button. #GetOCar #RideOCar pic.twitter.com/8yue6jNTiD— ORide (@getoride) November 19, 2019
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