Lagride secures $100m financing from UBA to scale its drive-to-own business

Lagos government-backed e-mobility company, Lagride, has secured $100 million in financing facility from the United Bank for Africa (UBA). This was disclosed by the company in a statement to Technext.

According to the statement, the facility will be deployed to expand its Drive To Own programme and enable 3,500 Lagos drivers to transition from daily earners into long-term asset owners, business operators and mobility investors.

The partnership with UBA is also expected to strengthen Lagos State’s transportation ecosystem and accelerate the shift toward a structured, technology-enabled and financially bankable mobility sector. 

Chief Diana Chen

Speaking about the new financing and partnership, Lagride Chairman, Chief Diana Chen, said the ultimate goal of the Drive To Own programme is not to keep drivers behind the wheel indefinitely, but to move them up the economic value chain.

See also: LagRide adds 100 electric cars, targets 10,000 drivers in bank-backed leasing scheme

She explained that Lagride is intentionally designed to help drivers evolve from operators into owners, and ultimately into investors and partners managing multiple vehicles and teams of people. 

“Lagride was created to give Lagos a modern, disciplined and technology-driven mobility system while ensuring that drivers are not left behind. The goal is for drivers, whom we call Captains, to become business owners, fleet partners and mobility investors, not just drivers. This 100 million dollar partnership with United Bank for Africa moves thousands of captains closer to owning productive assets, managing multiple cars and building stronger financial futures. It is a major step forward in our commitment to driver prosperity and the future of smart mobility in Lagos,” she said.

She further noted that the Drive To Own programme is a starting point, not an endpoint, laying the foundation for long-term enterprise building, governance and scalable wealth creation within the mobility sector. 

Lagride says Drive To Own scheme will make drivers investors

Over the past 10 months, Lagride has rebuilt its entire onboarding and operational system for drivers, known as Lagride Captains. The platform introduced a performance-led Drive To Earn structure supported by weekly and monthly rental models. This system has generated consistent 90-day usage and repayment data across the fleet, allowing United Bank for Africa and other financial institutions to assess driver performance with accuracy, confidence and transparency. 

Eligibility for the Drive To Own programme is based on clearly defined performance thresholds, repayment discipline, safety compliance and service consistency. Through this approach, Lagride has emerged as the most structured, data-driven and credit-ready mobility platform in Nigeria, setting a new benchmark for bankable driver financing and asset ownership.

“Transportation is the backbone of Africa’s economic future, and platforms like Lagride are creating the blueprint for how African cities can build modern, technology-driven and people-centred mobility systems,” the company said.

New LagRide managers and captains

Speaking about the partnership, Group Managing Director and CEO of UBA, Oliver Alawuba, said transportation is a source of dignity, livelihood and social mobility, and that UBA considers the sector critical to inclusive economic growth. 

He described the Lagride vision as clear, ambitious and strongly aligned with his bank’s commitment to financing real-sector projects that create jobs, build assets and deliver long-term economic impact. 

According to him, Lagride represents the kind of transformational, well-governed and data-backed initiative that UBA exists to support across Africa.

The partnership underscores a shared commitment by Lagride, United Bank for Africa and CIG Motors Group to build a disciplined, scalable and investor-ready mobility ecosystem where drivers can grow into business leaders, asset owners and long-term partners in Lagos’ transportation future.