Commercial activities are revving up in Africa. A Nigerian company is moving into East Africa.
Nigeria’s Autocheck, the automotive technology company facilitating auto financing across Africa, has acquired Cheki Kenya and Uganda from Ringier One Africa Media (ROAM).
This follows the earlier acquisition by Autocheck of Cheki Nigeria and Ghana as part of its launch in West Africa about a year ago.
Cheki is a notable brand with 10 years of experience, Autochevk is set to introduce additional technology solutions that will integrate the auto ecosystem as well as increase market adoption for auto loan financing. As part of the agreement, ROAM Africa will transfer ownership and operational control to Autochek.
Founded in 2010, Cheki Kenya has built a network of hundreds of dealers, more than 12,000 vehicles listed monthly and 700,000 monthly unique users on its platform with 80% plus year-on-year growth in the last two years.
Cheki had been launched as an online car classified for dealers, importers, and private sellers in Kenya. The startup, headquartered in Nairobi, expanded operations to Nigeria, Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
With credit penetration in Kenya at 27.5%, significantly higher than the West African market which stands at 5%, East Africa’s growing market is positioned as a key auto financing hub and Autocheck is now strategically positioned to scale as it becomes a pan-African player.
Autocheck combines technology, underpinned by data analytics to deepen auto finance penetration across the continent since it’s launched in 2020. It has the backing of notable investors such as TLcom Capital and 4DX Ventures. With a presence in Nigeria and Ghana, the company’s 360-degree automotive solution also provides a strong network of after-sales services that preserves and eases vehicle ownership experience across Africa.
The company closed a $3.4 million pre-seed round co-led by TLcom Capital and 4DX ventures last year.