CARS24 raises $20.4mn local debt funding from UAE’s CBD

CARS24, the leading Indian eCommerce platform for pre-owned vehicles has raised $20.4 million in local debt funding from the Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD), one of the leading banks in the UAE.

This debt facility further strengthens CARS24’s commitment to the UAE market and provides significant funding flexibility and room to grow its inventory. In addition, it is a testament to CBD’s focus on backing its customer’s ambitions and supporting new-age lending in the UAE’s digital ecosystem.

The agreement was signed between Dr. Bernd van Linder, CEO of CBD and Mr. Vikram Chopra, Co-Founder & Global CEO, CARS24. The company, valued at $1.8 billion, is one of the most valuable privately held pre-owned car startups globally. This debt funding follows the company’s $450 million global investment round in September 2021.

Since its beginning in UAE in May 2021, the company has sold over 2,000 cars and all of these transactions were conducted entirely online. In September this year, CARS24 had announced that it would be investing another $100 million in the UAE and other GCC countries to further expand its presence.

“UAE is a very important and strategic market for us. Raising these funds from CBD at this juncture will further consolidate our leadership position and as a brand we are delighted that the bank has supported our business model. UAE market has great potential and we want to set the stage for 2022 with a strong 4th quarter this year. The economic indicators have rapidly become encouraging and positive after the World EXPO 2020, and as a result, we have already seen a significant impact on our sales.” 

Dr. Van Linder said that “Since last year, there has been a huge increase in the number of online2offline businesses, partially due to the recent global pandemic, and we see a clear need to back these businesses and provide them with the funds they require to scale up and expand.”

CARS24 is currently backed by marquee investors like Sequoia, SoftBank, Falcon Edge, DST Global and Kingsway Capital. In addition, CARS24 enjoys the sponsorship of the great cricketer Mr. M.S. Dhoni as both an investor and brand ambassador. As a result of the company’s growth-oriented business model, it has received funding to the tune of $1 billion since it launched operations in India in 2015.

All vehicles on the CARS24 platform go through a 150+ points inspection and are thoroughly refurbished. Furthermore, these cars are put through a stringent Roads and Transport Authority’s (RTA) test before being listed online. Every car bought from CARS24 comes with a 7 days return policy and 2 years warranty.

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