Cassetex Ltd., Bangladesh’s first homegrown Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) clean infratech startup, has recently secured $1.6 million in funding from global and local investors, led by Infusion Partners Ltd. and Waverider International Consulting Co. Ltd. This investment will drive Cassetex’s mission to make electrification of transport, agriculture, and light industry more affordable in Bangladesh, Nepal, and East Africa. With this funding, Cassetex plans to onboard 50,000 new vehicles by 2026 and continue scaling its clean energy initiative.
Cassetex was founded in 2020 by a team of Bangladeshi electric vehicle pioneers, Gopal Kumar Mohoto, Ahmad Ad, and Tauseef Anwar, with the goal of reducing emissions in the transport sector. The company’s unique battery swapping solutions aim to generate new employment opportunities by empowering small business owners, particularly women, to become micro-energy entrepreneurs (mEE) through investing in Cassetex battery-swapping stations.
Ahmad Ad, CEO and Co-founder of Cassetex, shared his vision for the company’s future: “Our goal is to build a future where state-of-the-art EV batteries can be deployed responsibly, making Bangladesh a global leader in clean mobility. With this investment, we are set to expand our reach, empower women entrepreneurs, and make significant strides in transitioning to zero-emission transport. This is not just about electric vehicles—it’s about safeguarding our environment for future generations.”
The Cassetex mEE initiative allows small business owners—such as corner shop operators, mobile money providers, and tailors—to manage battery-swapping stations, increasing their income by selling energy. This approach particularly benefits women, who can run these stations with minimal effort while integrating it into their existing businesses. The initiative also helps bring clean energy to more communities and improve economic livelihoods.
Cassetex is committed to technological innovation and environmental responsibility. The company is working closely with global battery component experts to leverage state-of-the-art technology in lithium-ion batteries for longer cycle life. The battery swapping chargers used in the network achieve 25% more efficiency than market alternatives and are all managed by Cassetex’s own proprietary IOT Cloud Charge Management Platform called GenSwap. This platform enables power demand analysis, charger monitoring, and battery health. Cassetex’s swapping machines are Battery-to-Grid (B2G) ready, ensuring that in combination with the GenSwap platform, Cassetex batteries can also provide power back to the national grid. All Cassetex charging devices are integrated with renewable energy, and the company has already partnered with leading local renewable energy supply companies (RESCO) to provide low-cost dependable solar energy.
In line with Cassetex’s commitment to zero environmental impact, all used lithium-ion batteries are taken back to the company’s safe storage warehouse at the end of their life cycle for safe recycling and disposal, ensuring no harmful waste enters the environment.
Cassetex offers its customers full transparency on energy usage and battery performance through mobile apps. After joining the Cassetex network, customers only pay for the energy used, providing a flexible battery usage experience. With a promise of 1-minute battery exchange, customers no longer have to wait for charging the battery, ensuring maximum trips and higher income for vehicle owners and drivers.
Since 2020, the impact of Cassetex has been widely recognized by global experts. In 2020, Cassetex was awarded the Champion Startup by EU EIT Climate-KIC. In 2022, the company won the 2nd prize at the Youth4South Entrepreneurship Competition at Global South South Development (GSSD) Expo in Bangkok. Also in 2022, Cassetex was identified as a finalist in the CleanTech Startup category at the World Cleantech Awards organized by the Cleantech Business Club. In 2023, Cassetex was selected as one of the top ten companies in the “Innovation for our Climate and Environment” category by the UN SDG Digital program in New York. In 2024, Cassetex’s partner solutions were included in the final winners of the SolarX Startup Challenge APAC. The company is also a proud participant in global cleantech entrepreneurship programs organized by the Westerwelle Foundation and Solar Impulse Foundation.
Cassetex is a pioneering Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) clean infratech startup for light electric vehicles in South Asia and East Africa. Utilizing micro-energy entrepreneurs and battery swapping technology, the company aims to achieve zero-emission electrification in transport, agriculture, and light industry.
For more information, visit www.cassetex.com.
Waverider International Consulting Co. Ltd. is a Hong Kong-based company with investments in technology, transportation, and energy, with a particular focus on emerging markets in Africa and Asia.
Infusion Partners Ltd. is a family office in Bangladesh
Derick is an experienced reporter having held multiple senior roles for large publishers across Europe. Specialist subjects include small business and financial emerging markets.