US-based private aviation service JetSmarter has secured $105m in a series C round that included private aviation company JetEdge, TechCrunch reported yesterday.
The round also featured undisclosed additional strategic investors, KZ Capital, undisclosed equity funds from Abu Dhabi and Qatar, and members of the Saudi royal family, as well as Shawn Carter, the rapper and entrepreneur also known as Jay-Z.
JetSmarter allows users to book places on private jets or charter entire planes. Customers are required to pay a $15,000 annual membership fee which entitles them to travel free on one of the company’s regular routes, though members have to pay extra for guest passengers.
The funding, raised at a $1.5bn pre-money valuation, will be used to expand the markets in which JetSmarter currently operates from 50 across the US, Europe and Dubai to between 80 and 100 by the end of 2017, founder and CEO Sergey Petrossov told TechCrunch.
JetSmarter particularly wants to expand to Asia and Latin America, and to grow its flight network in the US. The company does not own any planes but instead operates through partnerships with carriers and aircraft owners.
The round took JetSmarter’s overall funding to about $157m, according to press reports. The Saudi royals contributed to a $20m series B round in July 2015 alongside Carter and other high net worth individuals before adding $26.1m in February this year, according to Bloomberg.
– Photo courtesy of JetSmarter