Dubai’s fuel-delivery startup Cafu teams up with Lazard to explore first-ever equity sale

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: Dubai-based Cafu, a fuel-delivery service, is looking to raise funds by selling a stake in the business for the first time.

The startup founded in 2018 by a member of a prominent Emirati merchant family, is working with Lazard Limited. The discussions are at a preliminary stage and no final decisions have been made.

Cafu is best known for its blue-green trucks that crisscross major cities in the United Arab Emirates, delivering fuel to clients’ doorsteps at the same price charged at regular petrol stations. In recent years, it has introduced additional services such as mobile car washed, battery replacements and electric vehicle recharging. The company also offers fuel delivery for boats and other watercraft at selected marinas in Dubai, according to its website. Cafu is active outside the region as well, with operations in Canada.

In a major shift in its business model, the company said in a note to clients that it will begin charging a fee for fuel deliveries, calling it “ a small change so e can keep doing things right.”

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The company is owned by founder Rashid Al Ghurair’s family, but little is known about its finances. Al-Ghurair is a conglomerate with operations across sectors including foods, resource, properties and construction.

A Cafu, executive said two years ago that “financing is another major challenge, especially because we took an approach to reduce the amount of equity fundraising.”

For Lazard, which recently set up an office in Abu Dhabi, securing the mandate would mark a welcome in as it seeks to capture market share in a region dominated by more prolific rivals, Rothschild & Co. and Moelis & Co.