Bolt, an Estonia-based ride hailing platform formerly known as Taxify and backed by carmaker Daimler and ride sharing service Didi Chuxing, has closed the first tranche of a series C round, TechCrunch reported yesterday.
Venture capital fund Nordic Ninjas, Naya Capital, Creandum and G Squared are thought to have backed the round, which valued Bolt at more than $1bn. A Bolt spokesperson confirmed the company had raised a new round, but did not offer further details.
Bolt operates a ride hailing service in 127 cities across 34 countries, with a focus on Europe and Africa, though it has also expanded further afield into Mexico, Australia, Russia, Georgia and Iraq.
In addition to a ride sharing platform, Bolt also maintains a network of scooters and a food delivery service. The series C funding will support Bolt’s recent launch in London, UK, and enable further expansion plans throughout the year.
Bolt had raised $185m in funding before the latest round, according to TechCrunch.
Daimler led a $175m series B round in May 2018 that also featured on-demand ride provider Didi Chuxing, venture capital fund Korelya Capital and Taavet Hinrikus, co-founder of money transfer platform TransferWise.
Didi Chuxing had already provided an undisclosed amount in 2017, adding to a reported $2.4m in earlier funding, including a $1.7m commitment from online advertising firm Adcash, Rubylight and TMT Investments in 2014.
