Car rental startup Zoomcar secures $5.5 mn from parent firm

By Samantha Machado

  • 12 May 2021
Credit: 123RF.com

Bengaluru-based self-drive car rental startup Zoomcar India Pvt Ltd has raised Rs 41 crore ($5.5 million) from its parent Zoomcar Inc, a regulatory filing showed. 

The filing said that it allocated 82,566 shares to Zoomcar Inc at a price of Rs 4,967 apiece on April 28. 

The firm has been looking to enhance its technological and data science infrastructure, upgrade its Internet of Things layout and shared subscription service and expand to more parts of the country. 

In January 2020, the company raised $30 million in a round led by Sony Innovation Fund, the venture arm of Japanese electronics major Sony Corporation.

Before that, in February 2018, automotive major Mahindra & Mahindra led a $40 million funding.  

The startup was co-founded by Greg Moran and David Back in 2012. The car rental firm is part of a new generation of transportation services promoting shared mobility. 

Its hyperlocal model allows customers to pick up cars from designated locations. The firm currently provides services in cities such as Mumbai, Jaipur, Kolkata, Chennai, Guwahati, and Ludhiana.