Online transaction platform for pre-owned vehicles CARS24, is the latest to join the unicorn club in India after raising over $200 million in a Series E round led by DST global with participation from existing investors including Exor Seeds, Moore Strategic Ventures and Unbound.
The fresh round of funding valued CARS24 over $1 billion, making it the first startup in the auto sector to reach the unicorn valuation.
The company said this financing will be used to strengthen the technology and product level innovation, brand building and scaling new business verticals. CARS24 forayed recently into different segments such as two-wheelers, and customer financing.
CARS24 claims that in less than 6 months of operations, the company has already transacted over 3,000 two-wheelers. The company also acquired an NBFC license last year for its financing business and is now providing quick and easy loan plans with 2-hour disbursals.
Vikram Chopra, co-founder and CEO, said, "With this investment, we will continue to innovate our product and bolster our capabilities to provide the best experience for all parties - with sellers getting the best value for their car, and buyers getting to choose from a wide assortment of automobiles.”
The company added that it has witnessed a robust recovery in business post lockdown and is currently operating above pre-COVID transactions with 4X increase in traffic on their website.
“CARS24 has pioneered a significantly differentiated experience for the customer and dealer by deeply leveraging data and technology at each step, resulting in world-class operational efficiency and market leadership in the segment," said Rahul Mehta, managing partner at DST Global.
He added, "We look forward to working together as they continue to deliver tremendous value to the entire ecosystem through first principles thinking,”
It also operates in over 130 cities in India and since its inception in 2015, the platform has added several offerings including an auction format, an inspection app, and an algorithm that matches supply and demand across the country.
CARS24 that also features an innovative price discovery mechanism for used vehicles is backed Sequoia India, Exor Seeds, DST Global, London based Kingsway Capital, Unbound, KCK and Silicon Valley & New York based Moore Strategic Ventures.