Oye
The economy on two wheels finally gets a stack. Fuel, finance, insurance, and goods — pre-negotiated, on one platform.
The problem
Kenya's boda boda economy is the country's largest informal employer — over 2.5 million riders, moving people and goods across cities every day. And yet every one of them pays retail. Retail fuel prices. Retail insurance premiums (if they have any cover at all, which most don't). Retail terms on the bike itself. The economics are punishing: a rider working a 14-hour day can lose a quarter of their take-home to costs that anyone buying at scale would never accept. The boda boda economy was a billion-dollar market being financially squeezed by the absence of a buyer's union.
The market we're building for
Boda boda riders
Kenya
Riders across the boda belt
Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, LatAm
Two-wheeler riders globally
The total addressable market
What I contributed
Co-founder
Oye is that buyer's union, built as a platform. We aggregate riders, negotiate bulk terms with fuel majors, insurers, and asset-finance providers, and pass the savings through. I co-founded it under Alternative Circle in 2021. My role has been on the partnership and capital side — closing the Britam equity investment via BetaLab, signing the Total Energies fuel contract across 260+ stations nationwide, and landing seats in the programs that put Oye through institutional-grade scrutiny: Britam's BimaLab insurtech accelerator, the international Microinsurance Master programme, and Safaricom Spark. The product itself is operator-led; my job is to make sure the deals and the validation behind the product are durable.
Outcome
Oye has onboarded over 25,000 riders. Britam — a 60-year-old insurer listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange with regional footprint across seven countries — took an equity position via its BetaLab fund, validating Oye as the rider-side distribution channel for regulated Personal Accident products. Total Energies, Vivo, Galana, and Mogo are all live partners. Revenue has tracked at roughly 70% annual growth — KES 2.5M to 6.4M to 7.2M across the most recent three reporting periods. We are now expanding into electric two-wheelers, where the savings on total cost of ownership are even more dramatic, and the partnership architecture we built for petrol bikes ports cleanly.
Highlights
- 25,000+ active riders on the platform
- Britam equity investment via BetaLab — a 60-year insurer listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange underwriting the thesis
- Selected for BimaLab — Britam's flagship insurtech accelerator for African startups
- Cohort member of the international Microinsurance Master programme
- Selected for Safaricom Spark — East Africa's most competitive tech accelerator
- Total Energies fuel contract signed — 260+ stations across Kenya
- Vivo, Galana, Mogo all live as platform partners
- Revenue trajectory — KES 2.5M → 6.4M → 7.2M across recent periods (~70% annual growth)
- Electric two-wheeler expansion underway — total cost of ownership dramatically improved