India's CarDekho raises US$250-M funding, breaches US$1 billion in value

MANILA: CarDekho, India’s largest vehicle search platform, has announced a US$250 million round of funding, which includes US$200 million in Series E equity and US$50 million dollars in debt in its pre-IPO round.

With the newest fundraising, CarDekho joins the unicorn club — breaching US$1 billion in value — (now at $1.2 billion) making it the firs unicorn based in Jaipur, Rajasthan.

This is the largest ever fundraise by CarDekho. The funds will be utilized to drive CarDekho’s growth in the used car transactions, financial services, and insurance businesses, as well as to develop robust product and technology functions, increase brand recognition, and expand into new regions.

CarDekho now acquires automobiles from consumers in over 100 markets and has a catalog of over 3,000 certified pre-owned vehicles available for purchase online. The company plans to grow its used car retail transactions operation geographically and targets to increase its catalog to 10,000 automobiles in the near future.

The company also targets to open retail hubs across India, which will concentrate on both used car buying and certified pre-owned car retail transactions with customers. The CarDekho team is now present in India, Indonesia, and the Philippines, with plans to grow internationally using the raised funds. The company’s auto and non-auto products are currently used in over 30 countries around the world.

In a statement, CarDekho Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Amit Jain said, “CarDekho, from being a car research portal, has evolved to become a complete ecosystem for car buying, lifecycle management and selling. We are committed to empowering our customers and providing them with a convenient and hassle-free experience. The new fundraise will help us expand our used car transactions and financial services businesses. The trust and conviction of our investors will help us to accelerate our growth plans while we provide our customers with an experience that will continue to redefine car buying and selling.”

The funding round was spearheaded by LeapFrog Investment, a global impact investor that focuses on financial services and healthcare access. LeapFrog will support CarDekho’s plans to provide quality and budget-friendly vehicles, insurance, and finance to new customers as the company continues to expand.

“Amit and the team have done an outstanding job in building the leading digital platform in India’s auto-tech market. We expect the business to continue on its rapid growth trajectory, thanks to the caliber of the team and the extraordinary tailwinds which this segment now enjoys from increasing formalization, digitization and transparency. CarDekho is an outstanding platform for large scale social impact, already making vehicles more accessible, affordable and trustworthy for over three million emerging consumers. Improving access to mobility in this way will help to drive development in other key areas, such as healthcare and education,” LeapFrog Investments South Asian Investments Partner and Co-Head Stewart Langdon stated.

US-based Canyon Partners, Mirae Asset, and Harbor Spring Capital were among the new investors. Existing investors Sequoia Capital India and Sunley House also increased their investments in CarDekho, reinforcing their belief in the company. Sequioa Capital India was one of the early investors in CarDekho, leading the Series A and Series C rounds in 2013 and 2018.

“Amit, Anurag, and the team at Cardekho have built a business that has far exceeded our initial expectations,” Sequioa India Managing Director Shailesh Lakhani said. Several of their business units hold leadership positions, and are now building further expertise in the used cars and financial services space where they are strongly positioned. The team at Sequoia India continues to be strong believers in their long-term success.”

Meanwhile, Sunley House Capital Director Abhinav Sharman stated, “We are thrilled to continue our support of CarDekho and their mission to be the leading retail auto and financial services provider in Southeast Asia. Since our initial investment, the company has had tremendous growth, establishing itself as the largest tech-auto platform in India. We are confident that this new investment will enable Cardekho to accelerate its growth in the auto retail market while capitalizing on the sizeable addressable market in auto insurance.”

CarDekho’s digital platforms, such as “New Auto,” and financial service businesses are already profitable, and the company’s insurance business, InsuranceDekho.com, has crossed the breakeven point. CarDekho gets a step closer to its vision of making car buying selling, and owing easier, providing customers with a pleasant, transparent, and affordable experience.

CarDekho was the first in India to digitalize the auto ecosystem, and it has since evolved into the go-to destination for all auto stakeholders, including original equipment manufacturers, dealers, automobile purchasers, and sellers, through its group companies. CarDekho has established a partnership with practically all Indian automakers, accounting for up to 30% of yearly sales for its key partners. The company collaborates with over 3,500 new car dealers and over 4,000 used car dealers, as well as local traders and entrepreneurs. It also works with 14 financial institutions and more than 40 insurance providers to simplify used car financing and insurance, giving both buyers and sellers a seamless experience.

ZIGWHEELS PHILIPPINES and Carmudi Philippines are members of the CarDekho Group.

Photo from CarDekho

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