Swvl

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Swvl
FoundedCairo, Egypt
2017 (2017)
FounderMostafa Kandil (CEO)
Ahmed Sabbah (CTO)
Mahmoud Noah
HeadquartersDubai, UAE
Area served
ProductsRidesharing
WebsiteOfficial website

Swvl is Dubai-based ridesharing company that produces an app for hailing buses.

History[]

Swvl was co-founded in Egypt in 2017 by Mostafa Kandil and two of his school friends, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh, who initially began developing Swvl as an app to address traffic jam chaos in Cairo, but then switched to developing it as a platform for booking cheap bus trips in the city.[1]

In early 2019, Swvl expanded into Kenya,[2] where it partnered with BRCK to provide free wifi on its buses.[3] In the same year, it also expanded to Nigeria.[2]

In June 2019, the company raised US$42 million[4] from venture-capital firms including Sweden’s Vostok, Dubai-based BECO Capital, China’s MSA, New York-based Endeavor Catalyst, Palo Alto-based Autotech and the Oman Technology Fund helped Swvl raise $42 million to fund its expansion into Africa.[1]

It subsequently expanded its operations into Pakistan, beginning with Lahore, in July 2019,[5] and into Jordan, beginning with Amman, in November 2019.[6] In October 2019, Swvl was temporarily banned in Kenya along with other bus-hailing apps due to regulatory issues.[7]

In July 2021, Swvl signed a merger deal with the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Queen's Gambit Growth Capital, the first SPAC led entirely by women, that valued Swvl at $1.5 billion and which will, upon completion, see it listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange.[8] The closure of the deal, currently slated for the fourth quarter of 2021, would make Swvl the second Middle Eastern tech unicorn after Careem and the first to list on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

Founders[]

Both SWVL co-founders left the company in a very early stage leaving Mostafa Kandil.

In October 2019, SWVL co-founder and COO Mahmoud Nouh left the company to start a new startup called Capiter.[9][10][11]

In March 2021, SWVL co-founder and CTO Ahmed Sabbah left the company by posting a social media post saying “It’s quite an emotional moment for me" leaving Kandil again and the second and final co-founder to leave.[12][13][14]

SPAC Investigation[]

In July 2021, Brodsky & Smith Announced an Investigation of Queen's Gambit SWVL SPAC due to violations of law and shareholders misconduct.[15]

SWVL Origins[]

SWVL left Egypt and claimed that it is a Dubai based startup to attract investors from United Stated which resulted into an investigation due to the SPAC with Queen's Gambit.[16]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Dubai's SWVL buys on-demand bus service Shotl". Zawya. 19 August 2021. Retrieved 2021-08-26.
  2. ^ a b "Egyptian firm expands further into Pakistan". DAWN.COM. September 17, 2019.
  3. ^ "Startups BRCK and Swvl partner on free Wi-Fi for Kenyan ride-hail buses".
  4. ^ "Egypt Bus-App Swvl Raises $42 Million for African Expansion". Bloomberg.com. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  5. ^ "SWVL to invest $25m to fund in Pakistan". samaa.tv. November 3, 2019.
  6. ^ "SWVL Jets Off to Jordan, Launches 'SWVL Business' in Amman". Startupscene. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  7. ^ Dahir, Abdi Latif. "Bus-hailing apps in Kenya are facing their first major regulatory challenge". Quartz Africa.
  8. ^ "US Stock Swvl Holdings Corp.(SWVL)". mg21.com. 2021-07-28.
  9. ^ "Exclusive: Swvl's co-founder and COO Mahmoud Nouh leaves the company". MENAbytes. 2019-10-24. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  10. ^ "Egyptian Startup Swvl 's Co-Founder Resigns From Company". Afrikan Heroes. 2019-10-26. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  11. ^ Arora, Jayant (2019-10-28). "Swvl's co-founder and COO Mahmoud Nouh leaves the company". LAFFAZ. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  12. ^ "Swvl co-founder and CTO Ahmed Sabbah leaves the company to start a consumer fintech". EgyptInnovate. 2021-03-25. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  13. ^ "Swvl co-founder and CTO Ahmed Sabbah leaves the company to start a consumer fintech". MENAbytes. 2021-03-14. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  14. ^ "SWVL Co-founder Ahmed Sabbah Announces Departure to Launch New Startup". Startupscene. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  15. ^ "SHAREHOLDER NOTICE: Brodsky & Smith Announces an Investigation of Queen's Gambit Growth Capital (NASDAQ:GMBT)". finance.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2021-12-02.
  16. ^ "Exclusive: Egypt's Swvl to move its headquarters to Dubai". MENAbytes. 2019-08-29. Retrieved 2021-12-02.
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