Award winning Kenyan food tech & media company EatOut announced today a round of investment from Kenya-based fintech innovator Craft Silicon. Craft Silicon who recently launched taxi hailing app Little Rider in partnership with telecom giant Safaricom will invest $500,000 to fund the development and launch of EatOut’s new mobile payments app and expedite growth into neighbouring markets. Kamal Budhabhatti, founder and CEO of Craft Silicon, will join EatOut’s board of directors.
“Over the last 12 months we have been testing our mobile payments and loyalty platform with several partners” said Mikul Shah, Director at EatOut. “In taking this big step forward we wanted a partner that could bring a wealth of industry expertise. The Craft Silicon team has been working with us since inception and we are delighted that they share our vision. It is extremely encouraging to see a local tech company invest in SMEs within the region. In many ways, this is a first and we hope it will pave way for more businesses to do the same. Craft Silicon has never been shy of a challenge and with products such as Little Rider have shown that they are able to compete head to head with some of the world’s largest tech brands.”
“EatOut is the go to source for foodies and has been a catalyst in transforming the region’s food culture with innovative products such as Yummy Magazine and Nairobi Restaurant Week. However, at the core they have a fascinating fintech product that we believe will change the way consumers dine in the region. Craft Silicon as a FinTech company building enhanced verticals that ride on our payment gateway, has made this investment because of our strong conviction in the founders, the world-class product they have built, and their ambitious vision.” said Mr. Kamal Budhabhatti, Chief Executive Officer, Craft Silicon.
The new EatOut App will allow diners to pay for their meals through their mobile phone. The mobile solution is also being integrated into several bank apps thanks in large part to support from Craft Silicon. EatOut’s move into the payments space through its app makes the investment by Craft Silicon particularly strategic.
“This investment comes as part of the expansion of Craft Silicon Retail Arm. Last year we started the most successful African taxi hailing platform, Little Rider. The future of the vertical is promising with more such expansion plans” said Mr. Jitendra Panchal, Managing Director, Craft Silicon Advisors.
Both Kamal Budhabatti and Mikul Shah were recently selected for the 2017 cohort of The Stanford Institute for Innovation in Developing Economies (SEED) program for East Africa, an initiative of the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
