The company is new, formed by chance. It is trying to transform urban transportation in the world’s most populous region.
Nicole Mao (33) and Yewai Zhu (32), two graduates from the prestigious Harvard University in the United States, were stranded in Bangladesh during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, they have been working on one of Bangladesh’s fastest-growing startups for the past three years.
Their battery-swapping station network for electric rickshaws in Bangladesh has been gaining popularity.
Next year, the number of these stations is expected to reach one thousand. These stations will primarily serve the millions of three-wheeled electric rickshaws or taxis in Bangladesh.
The startup, founded by two young Chinese entrepreneurs, is called Tiger New Energy. The company makes life easier for electric rickshaw drivers by offering them a new battery swapping option.
Drivers pay a “fee” to access this service, but the major benefit is the time saved, allowing them to complete more trips, thus increasing their earnings.
Nicole Mao, CEO of the Dhaka-based startup, said in an interview that the demand for this service is high. Bangladesh’s economy is growing, and many people are migrating from rural areas to cities in search of employment, creating a demand for mobility.
In India, tuk-tuks and three-wheelers in Thailand mostly run on petrol or natural gas. However, a large number of three-wheelers in cities like Dhaka and other Bangladeshi cities are electric.
Charging the batteries of these electric vehicles takes a long time. Additionally, the disposal of old lead-acid batteries, after they expire, poses health and environmental risks.
This is where Nicole Mao and Yewai Zhu saw an opportunity. They started working on their new initiative.
In 2021, during their spring break from Harvard, Nicole and Yewai planned a one-week visit to Bangladesh. However, after arriving, their return flight to China was canceled due to a sudden wave of COVID-19. They were stuck in Bangladesh for several months.
During their stay in Dhaka, they completed their final classes at Harvard via Zoom in the evenings while working on their startup idea during the day.
Nicole Mao’s family owns a battery manufacturing company in China. As a result, Nicole and Yewai decided to start the same business in Bangladesh.
They planned to import various components from China and integrate more sustainable lithium batteries, which they intended to sell to local customers.
Yewai Zhu, the COO of Tiger New Energy, said it seemed like a crazy idea. They took on the responsibility of hiring local workers, finding land for factories, and training employees.
Soon after starting their work, they realized that many drivers were unwilling or unable to spend $400 (around 48,000 BDT) at once to buy their product, even though their batteries had better mileage and longer life compared to lead-acid batteries. This led them to introduce the battery-swapping method, which worked out very well.
When drivers see that their battery charge is running low, they can visit an automated battery-swapping station and exchange their battery for a new one. The process is made easier with voice instructions.
The battery-swapping stations are connected to the local electricity grid. Some stations also have solar panels, which help in the charging process and mitigate the impact of power outages.
The founders of Tiger New Energy raised initial investment from ADB Ventures in the Philippines and WaveMaker Partners in Singapore. They used this funding to set up a lithium battery factory. They installed the first 100 battery-swapping stations of the startup in Chittagong, the economic hub of Bangladesh.
Nicole Mao mentioned that their startup is currently in the process of raising $30 million in funds. Once they secure this funding, they plan to increase the number of battery-swapping stations to 2,000 after 2025. They also plan to expand the initiative to Nepal and India’s West Bengal next year, where e-bikes are gaining popularity.
One of the challenges faced by the startup in Bangladesh is the unstable political situation. In July-August last year, the long-standing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted after student protests, and an interim government took over. This government is now focused on stabilizing the country’s economy and improving fair market practices, as mentioned in a report by Lightcastle Partners published last November.
The consultancy firm stated that despite these changes, there is a growing belief that Bangladesh’s startup ecosystem will thrive.
The firm also mentioned that local startups in Bangladesh have raised nearly $100 million in funding since 2013.
Nicole Mao, the CEO of Tiger New Energy, said that it is very difficult to find an area in China or the United States where people’s needs are unmet. But in Bangladesh, she always hears people asking if they can help create something that doesn’t exist here.
