Bolt Know-how OU is negotiating the acquisition of VotreChauffeur.ma, a Moroccan ride-hailing service based by distinguished native entrepreneurs Ismael Belkhayat and Jawad Ziyat, in line with folks conversant in the matter.
The potential transaction would give Estonia-based Bolt a stronger foothold in North Africa and sharpen its problem to Uber Applied sciences Inc., which has struggled to cement dominance within the area’s fragmented mobility market.
Belkhayat and Ziyat, amongst Morocco’s most seen startup leaders, have helped form the nation’s rising tech financial system. Belkhayat can also be the founding father of Chari.ma, an e-commerce and fintech app for conventional retailers in French-Talking Africa whereas Ziyat is a former soccer membership govt and investor with pursuits in transport and hospitality.
Their three way partnership, VotreChauffeur.ma — also referred to as VTC.ma — was launched as a neighborhood reply to world ride-hailing apps, specializing in premium and controlled chauffeur companies in main cities together with Casablanca, Rabat and Marrakesh.
Talks between the 2 sides are ongoing, and no binding settlement has been signed, the folks stated, asking to not be named as a result of the discussions are personal. Each Bolt and VotreChauffeur.ma declined to remark.
The transfer comes as competitors in North Africa’s transport sector heats up amid shifting laws and a rising demand for app-based companies. Bolt’s push into Morocco displays a broader technique to consolidate its place in African markets the place it already operates, from Nigeria to Kenya.
Market analysts say a deal might set off sharper value competitors and sooner innovation. “Bolt’s entry into Morocco by way of acquisition could be a wake-up name for incumbents,” stated one regional enterprise investor. “It could additionally validate the imaginative and prescient of native founders who constructed scalable mobility options regardless of regulatory and funding challenges.”
If accomplished, the acquisition would rank among the many most notable exits for Moroccan tech entrepreneurs, highlighting the nation’s progress as a budding startup hub. For Belkhayat and Ziyat, it might additionally unencumber assets to pursue different ventures in fintech and digital infrastructure — sectors they see as the following development frontier in Africa’s tech ecosystem.
