Namibian e-commerce startup, JABU secures $3.2 million in a seed round
JABU, a Namibian startup with venture capital firm YC backing, has received a $3.2 million investment for its B2B e-commerce and retail operation.
Afore Capital led the seed round, which was joined by Y Combinator, FJ Labs, Quiet Capital, Kli Capital, Pareto Capital, and unnamed angel investors.
In the mid-2020s, CEO David Akinin founded JABU to improve Namibia’s poor and practically non-existent distribution network and supply chain.
As a last-mile distribution e-commerce startup, JABU joins a growing number of African businesses that help small merchants buy and stock their products while also providing data-driven services to distributors and manufacturers.
Over 6,000 retailers, including Namibia Breweries Limited, ABInBev, Bokomo, Coca-Cola, and Namibmills, use its technology to automate the ordering, payment, and delivery processes.
Foreign currency accounts for a sizable portion of Namibia’s GDP. Because it owns its supply chain, JABU is also attempting to digitize its physical cash collection methods through the use of wallets.
Money received from retailers at JABU distribution centers is usually deposited into banks within 48 hours.
Businesses will be able to quickly deposit and withdraw funds in sync with these centers using JABU’s wallets, eliminating the need for this time-consuming process.
According to Akinin, in the next phase of JABU’s wallet platform, businesses will be able to offer users more services in addition to digitizing currency.
The majority of JABU’s revenue comes from self-distribution or third-party fleets. Merchandising, along with marketing and advertising, contributes to the profitability of the company. It will earn money from merchant wallet transactions in the future.
The seed fund and subsequent expansion round will be used to expand into Botswana and South Africa, strengthen the company’s technology and operations teams, and train current field agents.
JABU, which employs over 200 people, is planning a Series A fundraising round this quarter, according to Akinin.
