Fixit45, a leading Autotech platform, has announced the acquisition of Parkit, a network of tech-enabled Autocare and car wash centres as a demonstration of its stated commitment to facilitating value-creating interactions across stakeholders in the automotive industry.

Since its entry into the market in July 2021, Fixit45 has been focused on building a platform that provides a seamless, collaborative infrastructure for interactions to occur across verticals that include auto repair and maintenance services, fleet management, auto parts sourcing and delivery, auto care, refurbishment and upgrades, repair financing and mechanic workshop software as well as pre-purchase inspections, underlying these with moderation for compliance and accountability.

Fixit45 caters to needs in the repair and maintenance segment, Parkit plays in the auto care vertical, Xparts is a discovery and trading platform for spare parts where you can explore a rich inventory, find exact parts based on the platform’s AI tools and get these parts in very good time.

Rampware is a Software-as-a-Service tool to help auto-workshops manage their operations and improve service delivery experience.

On the acquisition, Justus Obaoye, CEO and Co-Founder, Fixit45 said, “Parkit was committed to building out and digitizing the fragmented vertical in the Auto Care and car wash space. They provided business support, training and consumables to businesses and ensured that the experience was rewarding for fleet and car owners.

“We found synergies in what they were doing at the time and we approached them to join us in this journey to fix and build the aftermarket ecosystem which has culminated in the acquisition. Parkit has been fully integrated into the Fixit45 family and we look forward to providing market leadership.”

L-R: Gerald Okonkwo, VP, Business Development; Justus Obaoye, CEO and Co-Founder, Fixit45; Abdulazeez Ogunjobi, Co-founder & CTO and Bemigho Awala, Head of Marketing and Communications at an engagement session with partners in Lagos

According to Gerald Okonkwo, VP, Business Development, Fixit45 and Founder, Parkit, “our business was founded in June 2018 to use technology in making the customer journey for car washes very seamless by automating payments, helping them acquire the right tools for the job and providing professional care services that were not available in-country.

“This journey has been a collaborative experience and we are blessed to have found the right team at Fixit45 with bold ambitions to create value for consumers in this space. The acquisition was finalized in September 2021 and we are looking to many more wins. When we started, we had to import most of our consumables and materials, but today, we are to provide quality car shampoo, upholstery, tire and engine wash, polish and air fresheners.

“This is just one of many success stories that this acquisition has berthed.”

Automobile ownership for car and fleet owners can be a frustrating experience owing to a myriad of factors that include highly fragmented, mostly unregulated industry, informal service providers who often lack the technical competence, as well as the proliferation of counterfeit spare parts with a lack of warranty on repairs. These challenges, in turn, have also impacted the service delivery experience from service providers.”

To change the narrative in the space, Fixit45 is collaborating with a lot of stakeholders and partners with a view to deepening value creation in the ecosystem. Some of these stakeholders include workshops, spare part suppliers, insurance companies, tow trucks, fintechs, and fleet owners.

The Fixit45 Vehicle Intact Programme (VIP) has been designed as the name suggests delivering quality and affordable repair and maintenance services via subscription-based plans with a view to ensuring that the lifetime value of a vehicle or fleet is enhanced and productivity optimized.

The rich bouquet of plans comes in 4 packages that include the Service Plan, Maintenance Plan, Extended Services Plan and the Emergency Services Plan.

The Service Plan ensures that subscribers don’t have to worry about the workmanship and getting their vehicles in good shape. The Maintenance Plan is a commitment to routine and or scheduled preventive maintenance which in turn mitigates the need for some repair work on the vehicle.

The Extended Service Plan works like an HMO for vehicles in which subscribers transfer to us the duty of keeping their fleet and or vehicles operational at all times. Because breakdowns don’t announce themselves, the Emergency Service plan is designed to give comfort and succour to motorists in the event of a breakdown.

With presence across 4 cities in Nigeria, more than 100 network partners and over 2500 vehicles under management, Fixit45’s ambition is to become Africa’s largest and most trusted Autotech platform.

“We have built a robust end-to-end ecosystem platform that caters for all players in the aftermarket segment. The industry has largely been based on brick-and-mortar operations and it is our intention to disrupt and digitize this space using technology,” said Abdulazeez Ogunjobi, Co-founder & CTO.

“It is gratifying to see the uptake and adoption of Fixit45’s service platform by corporates in the FMCG, Mobility and Tech industry. The glowing commendations we have received will further spur us to do more in the aftermarket space.

“Our value propositions of affordability, peace of mind, quick turnaround time, convenience, quality assurance and accessibility will never go out of fashion. We will double down on these and ensure that the vehicle ownership experience is better improved,” said Bemigho Awala, Head of Marketing and Communications.

Crowdyvest Limited, a fast-growing Nigerian fintech company, on Tuesday announced the re-launch of its mobile app.

Crowdyvest is the go-to digital wealth management and savings platform that creates an all-in-one financial solution for a community of individuals and organisations geared towards achieving financial freedom while facilitating economic growth in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The Company said in a statement that the refreshed mobile app offers a modern design, easy navigation, and exciting new features to deliver a top-notch and seamless digital banking experience for its existing and prospective members.

The platform has also introduced Crowdyvest Yield, a catalogue of alternative offers that include commodity-specific projects and discretionary plans available to members ranging from short to long term tenors across a wide range of sectors.

DigitalTimesNG understands that the features will give its members a variety of suitable plans to help build a saving and investment culture based entirely on their capability with product prices still as low as #1,000 and returns up to 25% per annum.

In addition to the upgraded features and new products, Crowdyvest has partnered with UBA Global Investor Services Limited and Parthian Securities Limited; an investment brokerage firm licensed by the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) to ensure proper fund utilization, transparency and compliance.

With this partnership, they hope to give more comfort to their members by ensuring the safety of their funds.

Checks by our correspondent revealed that Tope Omotolani, the Chief Executive Officer of Crowdyvest has the vision to transform the company into a platform that allows its customers to carry out all kinds of financial activities that help them plan their lives and make their financial goals possible from the comfort of their smartphones and devices.

But speaking on the revamped mobile app, Omotolani says, “We aim to become the platform that helps our members plan and structure their finances through the different range of products we offer.

“As we work with organisations in different sectors to power viable and impact-driven projects through the funds we raise from our members, a symbiotic interdependence is created, leading to financial and economic growth for all. We believe this partnership is needed to foster growth and create more opportunities for Africa.”

Crowdyvest has made an impressive growth of its user base from just over 50,000 customers to 140,000 customers in 8 months with a cumulative transaction value of more than 35 million dollars.

In the last 22 months, they have worked with different impact partners like Rice Afrika, Treepz, Landwey, Farmcrowdy, Crenov8 and others to fund projects in different sectors like agriculture, transportation, real estate, technology, telecoms and many more.

Crowdyvest also won the Africa Most Innovative Online Saving and Investment Brand of the Year 2021 award by The Most Innovative Fintech Brands Africa Awards, and the Most Promising Fintech Startup in Nigeria award by Global Business Outlook Awards 2021.

It has also won the Most Promising Tech Startup of the Year and the Most Outstanding Tech Startup of the Year by the Nigeria Technology Awards (NiTA) 2021 and was nominated for the prestigious African Banker Awards 2021 in the Innovation in Financial Services category.

Crowdyvest aims to become an impact-driven platform that provides all-in-one financial solutions for individuals and businesses that are committed to long-term growth and financial freedom.

The platform will foster avenues for broader economic growth and build a system that will span across Nigeria and Africa.

MTN Nigeria Tuesday announced that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved an offer for sale of up to 575 million ordinary shares in MTN Nigeria held by MTN International (Mauritius) Limited, by way of a bookbuild to qualified investors (Institutional Offer) and a fixed price to retail investors (Retail Offer).

The Company said in a statement signed by its Company Secretary, Uto Ukpanah, and made available to DigitalTimesNG that the Institutional Offer opens at 12.00 noon on 23 November 2021 and closes at 2.00 pm on 26 November 2021, after which a fixed price will be determined for the Retail Offer.

The Retail Offer is proposed to open after the Institutional Offer, and an announcement will be published in this regard once clearance is obtained from the SEC.