Bolt Send, the parcel delivery arm of ride-hailing platform Bolt, says it has completed more than six million deliveries in Nigeria so far in 2026, with the total covering January through the time of the company's announcement.

The service operates in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Owerri, and Bolt says it grew 37% year on year in 2025, measured through the 42nd week of the year. For a feature that launched only in 2023, the running total offers a sense of how quickly parcel requests have scaled inside an app originally built for rides.

Caroline Wanjihia, Regional Director for Rides Operations at Bolt Africa, said the figure reflects trust in the service.

"Six million deliveries is not just a number, it represents six million moments where someone needed something to move and trusted Bolt Send to make that happen," she said.

According to Bolt, Lagos in particular illustrates why delivery holds value: traffic congestion, long distances and the pressures of running a business or household mean many people prefer not to make the trip themselves.

From rides to parcel delivery in three years

Bolt launched Bolt Send in Nigeria in 2023, allowing users to request a courier through the Bolt app to pick up and deliver packages. The feature sits inside the same application used for rides, so customers do not need a separate app to send a parcel. Owerri was the most recent addition, with its launch announced in September.

The company says the service suits documents, clothing, small gifts and parcels from small businesses. There are limits: customers should not send items valued above ₦50,000, because packages are insured up to that amount, and Bolt has also warned users against sending prohibited goods. The ceiling effectively positions Bolt Send for everyday errands rather than high-value shipments.

A milestone amid pressure from drivers

The announcement comes as Bolt faces pressure from the drivers behind its core ride-hailing business. In October, Lagos drivers under the Amalgamated Union of App-based Transporters of Nigeria (AUATON) began an indefinite strike against Bolt and inDrive, demanding commissions of no more than 10%.

The union called off the four-day strike and urged members to uninstall inDrive over what it described as the company's failure to engage. Bolt, for its part, had called for dialogue and proposed a roundtable with driver representatives before the strike began.

It was not the first action this year. Lagos drivers staged a three-day strike in March over what they described as unsustainable earnings. In a May petition to the Lagos State Government, AUATON estimated that many drivers are left with less than ₦3,000 daily after deductions and expenses — figures put forward by the union itself.

The wider market has shifted as well. Uber ended its operations in Nigeria in September, while Bolt said it remains firmly committed to the market. In August, Bolt was cleared to resume operations at airports managed by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) after Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo intervened. Between the airport ruling, the state petition and the strike, app-based mobility has stayed on the agenda of both government and organized labor throughout the year.

Bolt's release does not give Bolt Send's 2025 total, so the six million figure cannot yet be set against last year's volume. The figures are also Bolt's own and have not been independently verified. Whether Bolt later publishes a 2025 baseline, extends the service beyond its four cities, and follows through on its proposed driver roundtable are the markers that will put this milestone in fuller context as the year unfolds.