Africa’s electric mobility race is entering a new phase, with Spiro appointing battery-swapping industry veteran Anant Badjatya as its new Group Chief Executive Officer following a landmark US$215 million equity raise aimed at accelerating its continental expansion.
The leadership change comes as the company seeks to cement its position as Africa’s largest electric mobility platform while scaling operations across existing and new markets, including Uganda, where demand for cleaner and more affordable transport solutions continues to grow.
Badjatya brings more than two decades of executive leadership spanning India, the Middle East and Africa, with particular expertise in building battery-swapping infrastructure at scale—a capability increasingly viewed as critical to the commercial viability of electric two- and three-wheelers in emerging markets.
Before joining Spiro, he led Indofast Energy, the joint venture between IndianOil and SUN Mobility, overseeing the development of one of India’s largest battery-swapping ecosystems. Under his leadership, the network expanded to more than 1,800 swapping stations serving approximately 90,000 vehicles every day, offering a blueprint that could prove influential in Africa’s rapidly evolving mobility landscape.
The appointment follows one of the largest capital injections ever recorded in Africa’s electric mobility sector. With fresh funding secured, Spiro is positioning itself not merely as an electric vehicle supplier but as an integrated mobility and energy company with ambitions spanning battery swapping, leasing, logistics, energy services and vehicle manufacturing.
His leadership, with proven operational experience in battery infrastructure could become a competitive advantage as African cities grapple with rising fuel costs, urban pollution and growing demand for affordable commercial transport.
For Uganda, where electric motorcycles are steadily gaining traction among boda-boda operators and fleet owners, Spiro’s continued investment could strengthen the country’s broader transition toward sustainable transport while stimulating investment in charging and battery-swapping infrastructure.
Founder and Chairman Gagan Gupta described the appointment as a strategic step in consolidating the company’s long-term growth initiatives, saying Badjatya will guide the next phase of execution across mobility, energy and technology businesses.
In his first remarks after the appointment, Badjatya described Africa as “the most exciting frontier for electric mobility,” citing Spiro’s established platform and opportunity to accelerate access to cleaner and more affordable transportation across the continent.
His arrival also signals a broader trend of cross-market leadership transfer, with executives who have successfully scaled India’s electric mobility ecosystem increasingly becoming sought-after talent for Africa’s fast-growing EV industry.
As competition intensifies and investors pour fresh capital into sustainable transport, Spiro’s ability to convert its record financing into profitable, scalable infrastructure could become one of the defining tests of Africa’s electric mobility revolution.