India-based car rental service Zoomcar is set to raise $25m in a series C round led by carmaker Ford’s Smart Mobility division, Business Standard reported on Saturday.
Ford Smart Mobility is putting up $15m of the money with the rest to be provided by Reliance Venture Asset Management, the venture capital vehicle for conglomerate Reliance Group, and venture capital firm Sequoia Capital.
Zoomcar operates a car sharing service that enables vehicles to be rented for short return trips, and it has more than 1,500 cars in its fleet. It targets high-density locations such as airports, train stations, universities and sizeable residential areas.
The company secured $11m in a July 2015 series B round backed by Nokia Growth Partners, the corporate venturing arm of communications technology producer Nokia, Sequoia Capital, Empire Angels and InnoVen, which provided $1m of debt financing.
Zoomcar has now raised $47m in total since it was founded in 2012, its earlier funding coming from Sequoia, Empire, FundersClub, Basset Investment Group and funds advised by Triangle Growth Partners.
– Photo courtesy of Zoomcar India Private Ltd.