India-based car rental startup Zoomcar recently raised $92 million in a sale of shares or bonds to pre-selected investors and institutions, according to a Tech in Asia report Tuesday (Nov. 9).
SternAegis Ventures was the lead investor in Zoomcar’s latest fundraising effort. Zoomcar will use the fresh capital injection to expand its car-sharing offering across India and expand into select markets in Asia, the Middle East and North Africa.
The company plans to invest more than $100 million across Southeast Asia in the next two or three years, but that number could grow as Zoomcar looks to bulk up its presence in the region.
Officials will also use the new investment to add to its engineering and data science platform and increase its work in the area of Internet of Things, machine learning and computer vision-related applications. Zoomcar is also enhancing its enterprise software platform for original equipment manufacturers and insurance companies.
Zoomcar, which was India’s first personal mobility platform when it launched in 2013, now has more than 10,000 cars at its disposal. The company has the country’s first peer-to-peer marketplace for cars through its shared subscription mobility program, which includes 90% of India’s market share in that space.
The firm will open a San Francisco office before going public in the U.S. to join its Southeast Asia and West Asia locations.
Related reading: Hertz Teams up With Carvana to Grow Online Sales
Meanwhile, car rental firm Hertz and online car retailer Carvana recently teamed up on an effort that allows Hertz to use Carvana’s online transaction technology and logistics network to increase its sales.
Carvana has more than 45,000 vehicles for sale and offers financing, trade-in and sales of customers’ current vehicles to Carvana. Users can also sign contracts and schedule as-soon-as-next-day delivery or pickup at one of Carvana’s automated Car Vending Machines.
Hertz exited bankruptcy in June in a $6 billion deal that gave 42% ownership to Knighthead Capital Management, Certares Opportunities and Apollo Capital Management.
In October, the company filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a $100 million initial public offering on Nasdaq.
Read more: Car Rental Demand Prompts Hertz To Try Again For IPO
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