Kenyan Smart Addressing Startup Solves Lack of Postal Addressing Infrastructure

OkHi has launched in Nigeria alongside strategic partner and new investor Interswitch Group, aiming to tackle a problem that costs Nigerian businesses an estimated US$2 billion a year. Co-founded in 2014 by Timbo Drayson, who while at Google led the launch of Google Maps across emerging markets and built Chromecast, the Nairobi-based OkHi has developed technology that enables any business to collect an accurate address from their customer, verify it, and navigate to it. Disrupt Africa reported in September the startup had raised a US$1.78 million funding round, and though that round has shrunk in size to US$1.5 million after an investor withdrew, further investors have now been named. They include Founders Factory Africa and Asian VC firm Betatron, as well as Interswitch, one of Africa’s largest fintech and digital commerce companies. Aside from capital, Interswitch is also OkHi’s key strategic partner for its Nigerian expansion. In Nigeria, lack of addressing is a painful problem for the entire economy. Last mile delivery businesses call their customers more than three times on average to find their doors. Banks must send agents to verify prospective customer addresses – limiting access to financial services. Emergency services get lost, leading to lost lives.

SOURCE: DISRUPT AFRICA