Thursday, March 28

Drivezy to Raise $60 Million in Series C Funding Round

Sharing economy-focused startup Drivezy is close to finalising a $60 million funding round (about Rs 432 crore), as it looks to double down on its vehicle sharing platform, particularly its two-wheeler segment.

The Bengaluru-based on-demand startup, which announced i.ts $20 million Series B round last month, expects to close the latest round by end-January, and which is likely to value the three-year-old company about $400 million, a four-fold jump from its November valuation.

Drivezy currently counts Das Capital, the investment firm founded by Japanese serial entrepreneur and investor Shinji Kimura, Bain Capital, the multi-asset alternative investment firm co-founded by former US presidential candidate Mitt Romney, European investment firm Accent Equity Partners and IT-Farm Corp among its list of investors.

Additionally, in the November round, Japanese automotive giant Yamaha Motor Company had also joined the company’s investor cap table, having invested through its Silicon Valley-based Innovation and Mobility fund.

In the same month, Drivezy, which was formerly known as JustRide, had also secured a $100 million asset financing deal, backed by Japan’s AnyPay, which it was planning to use to further build its vehicle fleet. Overall, the company has raised an estimated $128 million in asset financing till date.

Post the closure of the ongoing round, the summer 2016 Y Combinator batch alum will have raised over $90 million, cumulatively, across rounds.

‘If you look at the tier-2, tier-3 towns and cities, and further, the demand for two-wheelers is tremendous, and there is great least demand as well which has to be tapped,” Singh said.

The developments come at a time when the self-drive scooter segment, particularly in the US, has not only continued to be an investor darlings, but have seen two dominant ride-hailing majors – Uber and Lyft – look to get a head start over each other.