Page 26 - Logistics News - July August 2022

T R A N SPO R T

Logistics and fintech combine to

solve Africa’s transport challenges

Key to unlocking value chains, especially in the tech start-up space, is the ability of large,
established corporates to work effectively with small, agile start-ups.

ig corporations partnering with start-ups is an identification and development of concepts, including how
untested and undeveloped space. Few models have the bank could deploy its networks and abilities to solve for
Bbeen developed to date and examples of successful the start-up. The second or venture-led stage integrated the
collaboration are few and far between. “As such, the bank’s ability and networks to co-build the business with
success of Standard Bank’s recent direct minority equity the start-up partner.
investment into Tripplo, a tech-enabled logistics solution
highlights the power of both Standard Bank’s future-ready “The model allows Standard Bank to support
strategy, as well as its ecosystems approach in building and entrepreneurship and grow new businesses in line with
managing successful partnerships with start-ups,” says its purpose to drive Africa’s growth while gaining insight
Sacheen Kala, Head of the Founders Factory Partnership at into the growth cycle of tech start-ups and highlighting
Standard Bank’s Moonshots business innovation division. opportunities to deploy the bank’s own networks to
unlock and participate in this growth,” explains Kala.
This start-up partnership ability arose when Standard “Since the partnership also involves direct investment,
Bank entered a relationship with tech business accelerator the bank receives an additional return on investment
Founders Factory Africa (FFA), a venture development commensurate with the success of the venture
company that designs, builds and scales tech-enabled supported,” he adds.
businesses across Africa.
Today, Tripplo operates a digital logistics platform that
Recognising the challenges of intra-African logistics facilitates the safe and efficient movement of road freight
and trade, Victor Chaitezvi started Tripplo in 2018, armed cargo across the SADC, providing compliant transporters
with a vision to reimagine the movement of African cargo. access to credible cargo owners and cargo brokers. The
“Building a digital platform enabling real-time road freight platform also enables clients to manage all transporter
cargo booking integration and management across the company documents and provides detailed kilometre-by-
SADC, Chaitezvi effectively transformed the regions’ long- kilometre trip itineraries for trucks moving goods on any
established manually operated cargo logistics industry – in SADC route, while housing detailed information of trucks,
just three months,” says Darren Segal, Head of Moonshots. trailers and drivers all in one place, ensuring license, permit
As it turned out, the Tripplo platform also proved a just- and fee compliance.
in-time tech lifeline for the domestic logistics sector locked
down by the COVID-19 pandemic. Standard Bank’s involvement has also allowed it to
extend many of the benefits of its own ecosystem, such
“Standard Bank’s Tripplo partnership is an excellent as Truck Fuel Net and Instant Money, to the Tripplo
example of how a large platform organisation can deploy platform. The bank also provides Tripplo with foreign
technology to leverage its own value chains to unlock exchange rates, credit and goods in transit insurance
growth while working successfully with comparatively services.
small independent start-ups” says Kala. “By optimising and automating operations for small
L O GI S T I CS NEWS Africa (FFA) generally, and Tripplo in particular, has transporters across both its own and Standard Bank’s
Standard Bank’s experience with Founders Factory
platforms, Tripplo increases profitability for cargo owners,
cargo brokers and transporters alike, while extending
informed an effective two-stage corporate start-up
Standard Bank’s own digital capability to a previously
cooperation model. In the first stage, the FFA tech
incubator partnership enabled access through the

24 JULY/A U GU S T 2022 largely manually managed industry,” concludes Kala. •
www .l o g ist i csn e w s .c o .z a