Venture capital firm Nest has invested in Kenya’s Ongair, a web-based dashboard that enables businesses to engage with their customers on instant messaging platforms like WhatsApp, Messenger, Telegram and WeChat.

Aaron Fu, Managing Partner, Nest, Africa, said: “We are very excited about the growth Ongair is experiencing and believe that with this additional capital, network and strategic input, the company can grow even more rapidly."

Through investing in early stage startups, running corporate-backed accelerator programmes and nurturing a growing community of thought leaders, Nest has built an ecosystem that services early stage, high growth businesses.

“A key reason we are in Nairobi is to be able to take innovation born in Africa, just like Ongair, to the rest of the world, there are lots of innovative startups in Africa with products that have the potential to reach very similar target demographics outside of the continent. We hope to inspire more young African entrepreneurs to design global products and export their innovation to the rest of the world,“ he said.

Since its inception 12 months ago, Ongair has been actively used by a growing list of over 700 businesses around the world, including media, e-commerce platforms, universities, financial institutions and nonprofit organizations.

The company’s enterprise customers include TecnoBuy (Costa Rica), Zeker.ME (Denmark), Petsy (Mexico), CoreFone (Uruguay), Navitas global, AMREF Health Africa, Cheki Africa, Chase Bank (Kenya), EliteBet Kenya, JamboPay (Kenya), OLX (Kenya & Nigeria), and Heineken, among other clients in Africa, Asia, Europe and South America.

Ongair is the only IM aggregator worldwide offering Whatsapp, Messenger, WeChat and Telegram integration, with plans to add more instant messaging platforms.

Ongair’s product features include: Multiple agent support, Reports and Analytics, a RestFul API, Integration into popular CRM platforms like Zendesk among others, Ongair is also the leading IM to Zendesk platform in the world.

Trevor Kimenye, CEO of Ongair, said that Nest is an ideal partner for the company as it continues to scale its business globally.

“We’re excited to have a partner on board that provides us not only capital, but also vast strategic experience and network across these markets. Our goal is to help businesses serve customers and we’ll use the additional resources to support growth, expand strategically into Asian markets and deliver great product to delight our customers around the world," he said.