Carsome’s cash position at US$200 million after funding round
Chong Xin Wei
CAR e-commerce platform Carsome’s liquidity position stood at about US$200 million after its latest fundraising round, it said on Monday (Jun 19).
The round included participation from existing investors Qatar Investment Authority, Gobi Partners and Asia Partners, as well as Temasek-backed 65 Equity Partners and Seatown Private Capital Master Fund.
New investor EvolutionX Debt Capital, the growth-stage debt financing platform launched by DBS and Temasek, provided a long-term debt facility to the company.
EvolutionX is both an equity investor and a venture debt provider in the latest financing round.
Carsome said funds raised from the round are “balanced between both equity and debt”, which “optimises its capital structure and establishes a solid financial foundation for our future growth”.
Carsome co-founder and group chief executive officer Eric Cheng said: “Our comfortable liquidity position and strong backing from both existing and new investors place us on solid footing to deliver the world’s first integrated car ownership ecosystem.”
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With operations in South-east Asia, Carsome provides end-to-end solutions to consumers and used car dealers. Such solutions include car content consumption and inspection, ownership transfer and financing.
Rahul Shah, partner of EvolutionX, is positive on Carsome’s “continued focus towards achieving profitability” this year.
He also believes that the capital raised in the funding round will “optimise Carsome’s capital structure and improve the financial strength of the company” to maintain sustainable profitable growth.
Last year, the company’s revenue grew 250 per cent to US$1.5 billion, with its newly established regional retail line Carsome Certified contributing 35 per cent of total revenue.
The company added that in the first quarter of 2023, it achieved an operational profitability milestone on the back of significant growth in trade margin, which had doubled from the previous year.
To date, Carsome has more than 4,000 employees across its offices in Asia. It has sold more than 150,000 cars in 2022 and has an average of 15 million monthly visitors to its platform.
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