Drivezy eyes $60 million in the tank

NEW DELHI: Drivezy is close to finalising a $60-million funding round (Rs 432 crore), as the startup looks to double down on its vehicle-sharing platform, especially its two-wheeler segment.

The Bengaluru-based on-demand startup, which announced its $20-million Series-B round just last month, expects to close the latest round by end of January. The company is likely to be valued at about $400 million, a fourfold jump from its November valuation, according to two people briefed on the matter.

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


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

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

Both developments were first reported by ET in its edition dated October 17. After the closure of the ongoing round, the summer 2016 Y Combinator batch alum will have raised over $90 million, cumulatively, across rounds.

Ashwarya Singh, chief executive of Drivezy, declined to comment on the developments. According to the people briefed on the matter, the new investors are likely to be of Japanese origin and are listed entities. This could not be independently confirmed by ET.

In an earlier conversation with ET, Singh, who cofounded the company with Amit Sahu, Abhishek Mahajan and Vasant Verma in 2015, had said that Drivezy planned to double down on the two-wheeler segment.

“If you look at the tier-2, tier-3 towns and cities, and further, the demand for two-wheelers is tremendous,” Singh said.

At the time, Singh had said the company had 5,000 motorcycles and 2,800 cars on its platform, and will look to end the current financial year at 14,000 cars and 30,000 bikes. Earlier this month, Drivezy had added 10,000 bikes to its platform, launching the service across Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mysore, Mangalore and Manipal.

The self-drive scooter segment, particularly in the US, has not only continued to be an investor darling, but has seen two dominant ridehailing majors — Uber and Lyft — look to get a head start over each other.

There has been speculation that Uber has held talks to acquire both Bird and Lime, or one of them, in a multi-billion dollar deal.