Bisedge secures $20 million to scale electric fleet across Africa

Bisedge Logistics & Infrastructure has raised $20 million from pan-African investor Metier Private Equity, in a bet that African manufacturers, retailers and logistics operators are ready to hand over their forklift fleets, and the headaches that come with running them.

The Lagos-based company, which rents electric material handling equipment on long-term contracts, plans to use the capital to extend its footprint across Sub-Saharan Africa and deepen service operations in the four markets where it already holds exclusive distribution rights for Linde Material Handling, the German equipment manufacturer that dominates the global sector.

Those markets are Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya and Tanzania.

“Our goal is to drive sustainability beyond equipment supply, through performance-driven solutions that improve our customers’ operational efficiency every day,” said Christian Wessels, Co-Founder & CEO, Bisedge

The model Bisedge sells is straightforward: customers pay a recurring fee for forklifts, reach trucks and warehouse tractors without putting a single dollar of capital into equipment.

Bisedge handles maintenance, uptime guarantees and fleet management. The company calls it “Zero CapEx.” In practice, it is an Equipment-as-a-Service contract that mirrors what cloud computing did to corporate server rooms, shifting the asset off the balance sheet and onto a specialist operator’s.

That pitch is landing at an opportune moment. Corporate treasurers across Africa are increasingly reluctant to commit capital to equipment that depreciates, breaks down and requires specialist repair technicians most companies cannot afford to hire.

At the same time, multinationals with net-zero procurement commitments are pushing local subsidiaries to transition away from diesel and liquefied petroleum gas-powered equipment. Electric forklifts eliminate exhaust emissions in warehouses and, over a multi-year lease, typically reduce total operating costs against internal combustion alternatives.

Grant Howarth, director and principal at Metier, said the firm had been watching the industrial logistics services gap in Africa for some time before backing Bisedge.

“Bisedge stands out as a category leader in African intralogistics, with a proven model, disciplined execution and a clear runway for growth,” he said. “We are excited to partner with Christian, Jasper and the team to scale the business across the continent.”

Bisedge was co-founded by Christian Wessels, who serves as chief executive, and Jasper Graf von Hardenberg, the chief operating officer. The company supports intralogistics operations with more than 1,250 colleagues across its network and has extended its reach into the Gulf Cooperation Council markets alongside its African operations, an unusual geographic combination that reflects the trade corridors moving goods between the two regions.

Metier, which manages multiple private equity funds focused on the African continent, declined to disclose the ownership stake it acquired in exchange for the $20 million. The firm has built a portfolio spanning consumer, financial services and infrastructure businesses across the continent, typically targeting companies with existing revenue and proven unit economics rather than pre-revenue ventures.

For Bisedge, the immediate challenge will be deploying the capital fast enough to capture demand that competitors could otherwise fill.

The African forklift rental market remains fragmented, dominated by equipment distributors that sell rather than lease, leaving the managed services segment relatively uncontested. That window is unlikely to stay open indefinitely as global logistics majors with deeper balance sheets begin to take the continent more seriously.