Rewiring Informal Transport: How Loop Is Digitising Africa’s Shared Mobility Economy

Rewiring Informal Transport: How Loop Is Digitising Africa’s Shared Mobility Economy. Across many African cities, shared taxis and minibuses move millions of people every day. They are fast, flexible, and deeply embedded in daily life. Yet for years, much of this transport ecosystem has relied on cash payments, manual coordination, and fragmented record keeping.

That gap between essential service and digital infrastructure is exactly where Loop found its purpose.

Founded in 2022 by Imtiyaaz Riley and Jamie Wyngaard, the Cape Town based startup developed a multi functional mobile platform designed to digitise informal transport systems. By combining real time logistics, digital payments, and operational tracking, Loop is helping drivers, operators, and passengers move through cities with greater efficiency and security.

The company’s journey offers powerful insights into what happens when technology is built not around theory, but around lived experience and real world infrastructure.

Building From Lived Experience and System Gaps

Imtiyaaz Riley’s connection to the transport sector is not abstract. Raised in Manenberg and coming from a third generation minibus taxi family, he understood the realities of informal mobility long before building technology for it.

That proximity shaped the platform’s design. Instead of imposing external systems onto local transport networks, Loop digitises processes that already exist. Drivers can log trips, monitor earnings, and accept digital payments. Passengers gain access to ride tracking and secure cashless payment options.

The lesson for entrepreneurs is clear. The most effective innovation often begins with deep familiarity. When founders understand the systems they want to change, solutions become practical rather than theoretical.

Designing a Platform That Solves Multiple Problems at Once

Loop does not operate as a single purpose tool. It integrates logistics, financial management, and digital payments into one system.

Passengers can book rides through WhatsApp. Payments can be made through Chat to Pay or Tap to Phone. Drivers can track income in real time. The platform also allows belongings in transit to be insured, creating an added layer of security.

By solving several operational challenges simultaneously, the platform increases its relevance across the entire transport ecosystem.

For entrepreneurs, this reflects a critical strategy. Products that address interconnected problems often achieve faster adoption because they fit naturally into existing workflows.

Financial Inclusion as a Growth Engine

One of Loop’s most significant contributions lies in financial access. By enabling digital payments and structured transaction records, the platform brings informal operators into more visible economic participation.

Under Jamie Wyngaard’s leadership, the company enabled more than R50 million to flow into the informal economy, expanding access to traceable income and financial systems.

This approach reflects a broader philosophy that technology should not only optimise efficiency but also expand economic participation.

Entrepreneurs can learn from this dual value model. When innovation improves both performance and inclusion, it generates stronger long term impact.

Data as a Tool for Formalisation and Planning

Loop also gathers data on transport patterns and travel behaviour. This information helps local authorities and private partners better understand urban mobility dynamics.

In environments where transport networks often operate outside formal regulatory structures, reliable data becomes a powerful planning tool.

The platform therefore serves not only drivers and passengers, but also city stakeholders seeking clearer visibility into movement patterns.

This reveals another important lesson. Data can transform services into infrastructure. When information supports decision making beyond immediate transactions, a product becomes part of a broader system.

Strategic Expansion Built on Measured Growth

Since launching in Cape Town, Loop has expanded operations into Johannesburg while setting ambitions for growth across sub Saharan Africa.

The company generated over US$1.3 million in revenue in 2024 through ride fares and payment transaction fees, demonstrating commercial traction alongside operational impact.

This growth has been accompanied by significant recognition. The startup has received multiple awards, including honours from Meek Ventures, Innovation City, City of Cape Town, Re: Solve, and University of Pretoria through its Tuksnovation programme.

Recognition does more than validate innovation. It expands credibility, partnerships, and visibility.

Entrepreneurs should view awards not simply as milestones, but as strategic amplifiers of trust.

Leadership That Extends Beyond the Startup

Jamie Wyngaard’s broader work reflects a commitment to innovation driven by inclusion. He is also co founder of SocialHack and has served as an ambassador with Invest Cape Town, supporting efforts to make Cape Town more business friendly.

His experience across fintech, mobility, biotechnology, media, and education reinforces Loop’s multidisciplinary perspective. The company operates at the intersection of technology, design thinking, and social impact.

For founders, this highlights the importance of ecosystem thinking. Businesses grow faster when they are connected to wider networks of innovation and collaboration.

Lessons Entrepreneurs Can Apply From Loop’s Growth

Loop’s development offers practical guidance for building impactful technology ventures.

Start with real world systems, not abstract ideas.

Solve multiple connected problems to increase adoption.

Use technology to expand financial inclusion, not just efficiency.

Turn data into strategic infrastructure.

Leverage recognition and partnerships to accelerate growth.

Build businesses that connect to broader innovation ecosystems.

Each of these principles reflects deliberate design rather than accidental success.

Transforming Movement Into Opportunity

Loop is reshaping daily commuting by merging mobility, payments, and digital inclusion into a single platform. Its model demonstrates how technology can strengthen systems that already serve millions, rather than replacing them.

By grounding innovation in lived experience, integrating financial access, and using data to illuminate complex transport networks, the company shows what meaningful digital transformation looks like in practice.