India-based automotive marketplace CarDekho has entered talks with Google Capital, the growth equity arm of conglomerate Alphabet, over a round of up to $30m in size, the Times of India reported on Monday.
The round will be sized at between Rs 1.5bn and Rs 2bn ($22.5m and $30m), according to people familiar with the matter, and it is expected to also be backed by CarDekho’s existing shareholders.
Established in 2008, CarDekho’s platform enables car owners to sell their vehicles to other users. The company, a subsidiary of e-commerce company Girnar Software, also provides price comparisons, reviews and contact details of dealerships, as well as financing and insurance products.
Financial services firm HDFC Bank invested an undisclosed amount in CarDekho in May this year as part of a partnership agreement that allows the marketplace’s users to apply for car financing through the bank.
Investment firm Hillhouse Capital, hedge fund Tybourne Capital, venture capital firm Sequoia Capital and Ratan Tata, former chairman of conglomerate Tata, supplied $50m for CarDekho’s series B round in January 2015 at a $300m valuation.
CarDekho previously raised $15m in series A funding from Sequoia in 2013. Other Google Capital investments in India have so far included real estate portal CommonFloor, customer service provider FreshDesk and healthcare booking platform Practo.