Cars24 raises $400 mn in funding, valuation up 83% at $3.3 bn in 3 months

Cars24, an online seller of pre-owned vehicles, said on Monday that it has raised $400 million in funding at a $3.3 billion valuation and will use the capital to expand its business.

The Series G round of round includes a $300 million equity funding alongside $100 million of debt from various financial institutions from India, Australia, and the UAE. The equity round was led by return investor Alpha Wave Global (formerly known as Falcon Edge Capital) along with participation from other existing investors.

The company said it will use the investment to expand in the Middle East, Australia and Southeast Asia, and strengthen its foothold in the Indian market. The company’s last funding round was in September when it raised $450 million at $1.84 billion valuation.

“Today’s news is just another step in Cars24’s journey; we’re in it for the long haul, and we look forward to continuing our work of creating a frictionless consumer experience for used car customers. Cars24 has aggressive plans for 2022 and beyond, and we can’t wait to put this investment to work,” said Vikram Chopra, co-founder and chief executive officer of Cars24.

“We are excited to back Cars24 yet again as they continue to cement their leadership positions across India, UAE, Australia and other international markets. We believe this investment will help Cars24 fortify its moats even further and scale 10x from here over the next few years,” said Navroz D Udwadia, co-founder and Partner at Alpha Wave.

India’s pre-owned car market is set to more than double to 8.2 million units or $47 billion over the next five years ending FY26 from 4 million in FY21 or $17 billion, which means that two used-cars will be sold for every new car sold, according to a report by JM Financial.

Earlier in December, used car sales platform Spinny became the fourth tech company in the segment to enter the unicorn club as it raised $283 million at a valuation of $1.8 billion. The other Indian unicorns selling pre-owned cars are CarDekho and Droom. Another platform called CarTrade went public at a valuation of $980 million earlier in 2021.

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