Nigeria-based mobility company Drive45 Mobility has secured a $3 million senior debt facility from TLG Capital as it seeks to expand its vehicle fleet and increase its presence in the country’s corporate transportation market.
The Lagos-based company, founded in 2021, operates more than 170 vehicles and provides transportation services to local and international businesses. The financing will be used to add vehicles, acquire more customers and expand into other major Nigerian cities.
Drive45 plans to establish operations in Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano and Kaduna as it expands beyond its current market.
The transaction was arranged with a guarantee from Cascador, a Nigeria-focused platform for growth-stage companies, in partnership with Morgan Stanley. The structure is designed to give Drive45 access to institutional debt while reducing some of the financing risks associated with lending to a growing African business.
Drive45 has worked with Cascador since completing its ScaleUp program in 2024. Cascador has since provided the company with business support and helped prepare it for institutional financing.
“Mobility access is a capital business, so having the right financial backing is everything,” Drive45 Chief Executive Officer Oluwaseyi Adefemi said in a statement.
The company operates a model aimed at reducing the upfront capital required by businesses to access vehicles. Its services include vehicle financing, insurance, maintenance, tracking, documentation and fleet management.
Drive45 said it has recorded no payment defaults during its five years of operation, a track record that helped support its latest financing.
The deal comes as private credit managers increasingly provide growth capital to African companies that have established operations but may not have access to sufficient long-term bank financing or may prefer debt to additional equity dilution.
TLG Capital, which focuses exclusively on sub-Saharan Africa, has made more than 50 investments and completed more than 30 exits across more than 20 African countries since its founding in 2012. Its Africa Growth Impact Fund II is backed by institutional investors including the International Finance Corp., Norfund, Swedfund and Bpifrance.
For TLG, Drive45 is an example of the type of established African business that can use structured debt to finance expansion without raising another equity round.
“Drive45 is a prime example of disciplined capital deployment to meet a clear market need,” said Isha Doshi, co-founder and partner at TLG Capital.
TLG will continue working with Drive45 following the financing on governance, environmental, social and governance monitoring, operational performance and strategic growth initiatives.
Cascador Chief Executive Officer Trish Thomas said the financing reflects the role of structured capital in helping growth-stage African companies move beyond accelerator and early-stage funding.
The transaction was led by Adefemi for Drive45. TLG’s deal team included Aum Thacker and Rohan Subramanian. Legal counsel included Simon Harter, Hannaford Turner and Wigwe and Partners.
For Drive45, the immediate focus is expanding its fleet and reaching more corporate customers as it builds a larger mobility operation across Nigeria.