Kenyan startup Data Integrated, which provides matatu cooperatives with bus management and digital ticketing systems, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from the Toyota Tsusho Corporation.
Founded in 2012, Data Integrated provides around 3,000 bus operators under 40 matatu cooperatives with access to bus management and digital ticketing platform, helping to make public transport systems in Kenya more efficient.
The startup has now raised funding to further scale, with Toyota Tsusho and its group company CFAO investing through Mobility 54, established in October 2019 as a group joint venture between Toyota Tsusho and CFAO.
Toyota Tshusho said it saw huge opportunities in the Kenyan mobility space as the Kenya Transport Authority imposes a cashless payment policy in the public transport sector as a preventative measure against COVID-19.
“Under such circumstances, Data Integrated launched its cashless payment system approved by the authority as well as a passenger application for bus searching, booking and payment, which fully leverages its operators’ network in order to further contribute to hygienic public bus services together with the government,” the company said.
“Toyota Tsusho has been engaged in mobility businesses in Africa mainly from a hardware perspective, such as vehicle and after service supply. The investment into Data Integrated today is strategically positioned to accelerate the MaaS/CASE businesses from a software perspective. We are fully committed to solve social challenges in the mobility sector in Africa by bringing complementary knowledge from both hardware and software point of view.”
