CarDekho raises $250 mn, becomes 31st Indian unicorn of 2021

New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) Car search platform CarDekho on Wednesday said it has raised $250 million, taking its valuation to $1.2 billion and becoming the 31st unicorn of 2021 in the country.

The fresh round of funding included $200 million Series E equity and $50 million debt in its pre-IPO round. The funding round was led by LeapFrog Investments, a global impact investor focused on financial services and healthcare access.

The company said it plans to expand across India with retail hubs that will focus on both used car buying and certified pre-owned car retail transactions with customers.

The CarDekho team is currently present in India, Indonesia and Philippines and aims to use the funds to expand internationally. The company's auto and non-auto products are currently used in more than 30 countries globally.

"The new fundraise will help us expand our Used Car transactions and Financial services businesses. The trust and conviction of our investors will help us to accelerate our growth plans," said Amit Jain, Co-founder and CEO, CarDekho.

CarDekho currently buys cars from customers in more than 100 markets and has a catalogue of more than 3,000 certified pre-owned cars for online purchase.

The company will expand its used car retail transactions business geographically and is set to increase its catalogue to 10,000 cars in the near future.

As CarDekho Group continues to scale, LeapFrog will support the company's plans to deliver quality and affordable vehicles, insurance, and finance to millions of new emerging consumers. Improved mobility remains a proven driver of access to healthcare, education, and employment opportunities.

Other new investors who participated in the new funding round included the US based Canyon Partners, Mirae Asset and Harbor Spring Capital, along with existing investors Sequoia Capital India and Sunley House.

"CarDekho is making vehicles more accessible, affordable and trustworthy for over three million emerging consumers," said Stewart Langdon, Partner and Co-Head of South Asian Investments, LeapFrog Investments.

India is adding at least three 'unicorns' per month in 2021. India is the third in the list of countries having the most unicorns, trailing the US and China, but ahead of the UK and Germany, as per a report by Hurun India.