How it works
1. You buy
2. We manage
We lease the motorcycle to a selected driver to start a transportation business
3. Drivers thrive
The driver earns an income, supports his family and pays for the motorcycle by running his or her business
4. You profit
The process
Here's breakdown of the process
Understand cidi’s process in 2mins
how cidi operates
What is the impact we generate?
How does the platform work?
What are you buying?
Who are your affiliates and partners?
How do you pick drivers and make sure that they are creditworthy?
How do you manage risk?
How do you get money back?
How does cidi make money?
why cidi is better
cidi offers a solution that is easy to access, engaging and that solves two big problems: that of poverty in developing countries and that of lack of attractive investment returns for investors
Marketplace lending companies like Lending Club have lower returns, high default rates, charge fees and do not solve big problems such as poverty
 |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Average Interest Rate | 10% | 14% |
| Principal and interest losses | 0% | -8% |
| Fess | 0% | -1% |
| Net Return | 10% | 5% |
*Largest market place lender in the world
There are many options for making purposeful or SRI investments, but they are either inaccessible, expensive, lacking real impact or lacking attractive returns.
| cidi | Impact Funds | ESG or SRI Funds | Bank Savings | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Easy to Access | YES | NO | YES | YES |
| Free | YES | NO | NO | NO |
| High Impact | YES | YES | NO | NO |
| Liquid | YES | NO | YES | YES |
| High Return | YES | NO | NO | NO |
| Engaging | YES | NO | NO | NO |
| Low Risk | YES | NO | YES | YES |
Marketplace lending companies like Lending Club have lower returns, high default rates, charge fees and do not solve big problems such as poverty
| cidi | LendingClub | |
|---|---|---|
| Average Interest Rate | 10% | 14% |
| Principal and interest losses | 0% | -8% |
| Fess | 0% | -1% |
| Net Return | 10% | 5% |
*Largest market place lender in the world
There are many options for making purposeful or SRI investments, but they are either inaccessible, expensive, lacking real impact or lacking attractive returns.
| cidi | Impact Funds |
ESG or SRI Funds |
Bank Savings |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Easy to Access | YES | NO | YES | YES |
| Free | YES | NO | NO | NO |
| High Impact | YES | YES | NO | NO |
| Liquid | YES | NO | YES | YES |
| High Return | YES | NO | NO | NO |
| Engaging | YES | NO | NO | NO |
| Low Risk | YES | NO | YES | YES |
why are motorcycles effective ?
cidi Motorcycle financing generates attractive returns and has a low historical low default rate. Underpinning all is the fact that the motorcycle business generates a decent income for the entrepreneurs. Furthermore, every motorcycle financing is secured by the motorcycle. This means that if a borrower fails to repay cidi would repossess the motorcycle and lease it out to another driver or sell it to recover the money.
Motorcycles represent the major transportation option for the majority of Africa’s 1 billion transport dependent, due to the low cost per trip and absence of formal public transport.
Ownership of a motorcycle can provide millions with work as self-employed taxi drivers, allowing them to earn a livelihood to support themselves and their families. These drivers, in turn, support hundreds of millions to get from home to work cheaply, further contributing to wider economic development at scale across the continent.
Making motorcycles a low risk proposition
There are risks associated with our business and we take it as our responsibility to manage such risks very seriously. What are the risks and how do we manage them?
Economic risk:
- The ability of micro-entrepreneurs to service their lease payments is related to their income generation ability which can be impacted by a negative economic cycle. If the driver’s income level falls, he or she may find it difficult to meet repayment obligations.
- We plan for this by focusing on countries with strong economic growth and by helping the drivers connect to more sources of income such as ride-hailing networks and parcel delivery networks.
- We believe that the nature of the basic public service the drivers provide is less sensitive to economic cycles than other discretionary purchases but are also cognisant that a deep recession would lead to higher defaults and inevitably repossessions and sale of the bikes to recover the money.
Security risk:
- All our motorcycle financings are secured by the motorcycle. As with any secured asset, there is a risk that the security is not properly constituted, rendering it unenforceable. We give great attention to making sure our security is watertight by having direct claims on motorcycle ownership. This, together with our diligent internal processes, ensures that security risk is minimized.
Payment risk:
- Before a commitment to financing, a motorcycle is made, the creditworthiness of the borrower, the viability of the borrower’s repayment ability, his or her aptitude to undertake the motorcycle business is carefully examined. Borrowers must also provide a deposit for up to 30% of the value of the motorcycle and have guarantors that stand in their stead should they not repay.
Borrower default:
- Every motorcycle financing is secured against the motorcycle. This means that in the event that a borrower fails to repay, the motorcycle can be repossessed and leased out to another driver or sold. The secured nature of the financing, however, does not mean that full repayment of the motorcycle cost is guaranteed because the value of our buyback obligation to our buyers may exceed the motorcycle net sale proceeds. Where appropriate the personal obligations of the borrowers and their guarantors my be relied upon to ensure the full value of the motorcycle is fully repaid.
- Sometimes, borrowers require some flexibility. For example, they might warn of an issue that could make them late on a payment. If having assessed the facts and the evidence provided there is comfort with the causes of the delay, the borrower may be allowed to defer payment to a later date.
- Furthermore, If buying a motorcycle with cidi, Buyers are not presented with the risk of the individual motorcycle default, that is if a driver does not repay his motorcycle, cidi’s buy-back obligation to the buyer still stands.
- Your capital may be at risk if a large number of motorcycle loans fail to make payments. Given historic default rates of less than 1% with our partners, we think this unlikely.
Borrower fraud:
- The risk of fraud is planned for by ensuring that motorcycles are insured against theft and damages. Furthermore, trackers that can locate and immobilize the motorcycles in case of nonpayment or theft are installed for extra protection. Finally, there is the option of making recourse to the driver’s guarantors as part of the leasing agreement with the driver.
Risk outside Borrower’s Control:
- Every motorcycle financed is ensured against accident, theft, damage, and vandalism.
Platform failure:
- A benefit of investing through our platform is that you never have to deal with individual borrowers directly. cidi does all that for you. However, if cidi was to fail, Buyers would not have direct access to borrowers to recover their money. The enforceability of the purchase agreement is under the framework of UK law. In the unlikely event that our platform was to fail, become insolvent, or not honor its obligations, you will have the right to seek legal action in the UK against cidi for not honouring the buyback provision, to enforce a sale of our assets (the motorcycles) to get compensation or to seek damages and legal fees reimbursed.
- As with any company, there is a risk that cidi may lack the financial resources required in order to keep the business running.