Dodai, an electric mobility startup operating in Addis Ababa, has raised US$13 million in a Series A round split between US$8 million in equity and US$5 million in debt, as it moves to expand electric motorbike deployment and battery-swapping infrastructure in one of Africa’s most tightly controlled automotive markets.
- •The round drew backing from British International Investment (BII) alongside a group of Japanese and impact-focused investors with growing interest in Ethiopia’s early-stage electric transport sector.
- •The financing comes as the country pushes an aggressive electrification agenda including a ban on imports of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles that has begun to reshape urban transport economics.
- •Dodai plans to use the capital to scale its battery-swapping network and grow its rider base over the next year, targeting thousands of users and dozens of stations across the Ethiopian capital.
“From overnight assembly to building operations from the ground up, every constraint became something we chose to take on and solve with our team and partners on the ground. We will now accelerate and scale this impact even further,” said Hilina Legesse, SVP and Head of Corporate, Dodai.
Over a three-year horizon, the company also aims to build out a significantly larger network before expanding into other African cities such as Abidjan, Kinshasa, and Accra.
Founded three years ago, Dodai has assembled and deployed more than 2,000 electric motorbikes in Ethiopia, positioning itself in a market where demand for low-cost urban transport is rising alongside the growth of e-commerce and delivery services. The company operates a localized assembly model and has built a workforce largely composed of Ethiopian employees.
The bet on Ethiopia sets Dodai apart from many African mobility startups that have concentrated on larger and more established markets such as Kenya and Nigeria. While Ethiopia’s regulatory environment and foreign exchange constraints have historically deterred investors, recent policy shifts toward electrification have created a more defined pathway for electric vehicle operators.
The company’s expansion strategy hinges on the viability of battery swapping as an alternative to conventional charging infrastructure, particularly in dense urban areas where grid reliability and charging time remain constraints.
