Japanese investors back Kenyan automotive startup
Kenyan automotive startup Peach Cars has raised $5 million in seed funding, marking one of the largest rounds in Africa’s mobility sector. Led by University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners (UTEC), the investment round also attracted contributions from Mercari’s CEO, Shintaro Yamada; PayPal’s head of Japan, Peter Kenevan; and Waseda University Ventures’ GP, Hiroaki Ohta.
Peach Cars has developed a proprietary smart engine check system which automates the car inspection process, providing a 225-point system that meets Japanese auto industry standards. This is particularly significant in Kenya, where 80% of cars are Japanese. Since its inception in November 2020, the firm has sought to reform car ownership in sub-Saharan Africa, with a focus on addressing information asymmetry, mistrust, and fraud in the region’s second-hand car market.