LAGOS, Nigeria – Bisedge Logistics & Infrastructure has secured a €10mn long-term loan from Finnish development financier and impact investor Finnfund to expand its electric material-handling fleet in Nigeria and East Africa.
The financing follows a recent equity investment from private equity firm Metier Private Equity, providing additional capital for Bisedge to scale its operations, expand market coverage and strengthen its service infrastructure across the region.
Bisedge supplies electric forklifts, reach trucks and tractors through a “Zero CapEx” model that allows customers to modernise their equipment without significant upfront capital expenditure. Its equipment-as-a-service offering includes end-to-end fleet management designed to improve operational uptime and efficiency.
The company aims to help industrial customers reduce total ownership costs and emissions by replacing diesel- and gas-powered machinery with electric alternatives.
Christian Wessels, Bisedge’s co-founder and chief executive, said the loan’s long-term structure aligned with the company’s multi-year customer contracts and equipment lifecycle.
“Our business is built on long-term partnerships with our customers, and Finnfund’s long-term capital is a natural fit for that model,” Wessels said. The financing would help accelerate the electrification of intralogistics in Nigeria and East Africa, allowing clients to lower costs and emissions while maintaining daily operations, he added.
Justin Nthala, senior investment manager at Finnfund, said Bisedge’s service-based model made clean technology more accessible to African businesses by removing the upfront cost of electric equipment.
“By removing the upfront cost of electric equipment, the company helps its clients cut emissions and improve productivity while creating skilled local jobs,” Nthala said.
Bisedge is a green logistics company providing material-handling equipment and fleet-management services across sub-Saharan Africa and the Gulf Cooperation Council region. It employs more than 1,350 people and supports industrial customers with equipment designed to improve operational efficiency and reduce emissions.
The company is the exclusive partner of Linde Material Handling, a leading global manufacturer of material-handling equipment, in Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa. It was co-founded by Wessels, chief executive, and Jasper Graf von Hardenberg, chief operating officer.
Finnfund invests in businesses in developing markets to address global development challenges and generate development impact. The Finnish institution invests between €200mn and €250mn annually in about 20 to 30 companies in developing countries, focusing on digital infrastructure and solutions, clean energy, forestry, agriculture and financing for small and medium-sized enterprises through financial institutions.
Finnfund’s investments, commitments and investment decisions total about €1.2bn. The organisation employs approximately 100 people across its offices in Helsinki and Nairobi.
The financing underscores the role of development capital in helping businesses adopt lower-emission industrial technologies while managing the upfront costs associated with equipment upgrades. For Bisedge, the loan provides longer-term funding to expand its fleet and service operations in key African markets.
The companies did not disclose the loan’s interest rate, repayment schedule or specific deployment timetable.
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