Automotive retailer Lithia Motors invested $54m yesterday to lead a series D round for US-based online vehicle sales service provider Shift Technologies consisting of more than $140m in equity and debt financing.
BMW i Ventures, the strategic investment arm of automotive manufacturer BMW, and Alliance Ventures, which represents carmakers Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi, also took part in the round.
The corporates were joined by investment banking firm Goldman Sachs’ Investment Partners unit and venture capital firms DCM Ventures, DFJ, G2VP and Highland Capital Partners.
Founded in 2013, Shift runs a service that helps users sell their vehicles. The company lists each car on several online sites, sifts through potential buyers and manages test drives, inspection and delivery.
Shift and Lithia have also formed a strategic partnership that will involve sharing data, vehicle inventory, technology, business relationships and their physical networks in a bid to jointly grab more of the second-hand automotive sales market in the US.
Lithia’s funding makes it Shift’s largest investor, and Bryan DeBoer, the corporate’s president and CEO, will join Shift’s board of directors. He said: “We are impressed with Shift’s technology platform and dynamic operational capabilities.
“Like us, they are creating a digital marketplace and providing a retail experience wherever, whenever and however consumers desire. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with a company that is a great cultural fit.”
The round brought Shift’s overall debt and equity financing to $265m, it said. BMW i Ventures led the company’s $38m series C round in July 2017, investing with Goldman Sachs Investment Partners DCM, DFJ and Highland Capital and G2VP.