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Mrsool eyes expansion in Africa via Egypt, listing on an Arab stock exchange

Mrsool eyes expansion in Africa via Egypt, listing on an Arab stock exchange
The Egyptian market accounts for 10-15% of Mrsool's total operations

By: Ahmed Allam 

Cairo - Mubasher: Mrsool has invested about EGP 300 million in the Egyptian market since launching its operations in the country in mid-2019, Country Manager for Egypt Osama Harfoush revealed. 

The Saudi delivery platform is planning to increase its investments in the coming period, given the growing demand in the Egyptian market, as the app now has  1.3 million users in Egypt out of 12 million users worldwide, Harfoush told Mubasher.

The on-demand delivery service has proven to be highly reliable as it is one of the top five food ordering apps in the country, he noted. 

Delivery service prices are determined beforehand by service providers (couriers) who are charged 25% fees on the total delivery price. 

Expansion in Africa through Egypt

Mrsool has chosen the Egyptian market as its first destination to expand in Africa as tech startups are highly encouraged by the government with several incentives and supported by the large low-cost market, Harfoush noted. 

The delivery service platform is currently considering expansion in Kenya, Uganda, South Africa, and Morocco. 

In Egypt, the platform is focusing on providing better services in Cairo and Alexandria as well as other eight cities. With the return of tourism in the country, Mrsool aims to add Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheikh as well as other governorates to its expansion plan, he added. 

Currently, the Egyptian market accounts for 10-15% of Mrsool's total operations, with plans to reach 30% in five years. 

As for e-payment services, the Country Manager said that the company has made much progress as e-payment transactions currently make up 45%, compared to 25% since the service has been launched in Egypt. It plans to increase the e-payment transactions to 65% of the total by the end of 2021. 

An e-payment firm has been hired in Egypt to provide its services through the app. The trial operations have started, while the official launch is expected to be in the third-to-fourth quarter (Q3-Q4) of 2021. 

There are currently more than 1.3 million users in Egypt out of 7 million users in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain. The total number of service providers reaches about 120,000 in Egypt and one million in Saudi Arabia. 

Two million users by end-2021

Mrsool is looking to increase the number of app users in Egypt to two million and the number of service providers to 200,000 by the end of 2021, along with adding new service packages in the upcoming period, Harfoush said. 

The company's five-year plan includes attracting a million service providers in the most populous Arab country. 

Road network developments and payment facilities for vehicles have largely helped the platform provide better services at lower prices in the country. 

Listing plans

The company currently plans to go public on a stock exchange in Saudi Arabia or the UAE, Harfoush added, noting that a new company is being established for that purpose. 

He pointed out that the company has not received any new funding since 2018 and all investments are self-financed from achieved profits. 

Mrsool, founded in 2015 by Ayman Al Sanad and Naif Al Samri, matches shoppers with couriers who purchase orders on behalf of the shopper and deliver it to them. The Saudi-based platform has been incubated by Badir Technology Incubator in 2015. 

 

Translated by: Zeinab Adel