BlaBlaCar raises $200m for emerging markets push

BlaBlaCar will use the new funds both to support continued growth in established markets and to expand into additional markets, including several in Asia. The company currently has more than 20 million members in 19 countries, according to a statement, and it entered India six months ago.

Founded in 2006, BlaBlaCar's platform enables drivers who are planning a long distance journey to connect with riders who are willing to share the costs of the trip. It claims to have already helped travellers share more than 17 million kilometers worth of rides across 700 cities in India.

The latest investment brings the total amount raised by BlaBlaCar to over $300 million. The company operates mostly in European countries, with India, Turkey and Mexico representing its only non-European territories.

As part of the investment, Insight Managing Director Jeff Horing will join the board of BlaBlaCar. He credited the company's management for having "rapidly succeeded in building a unique service and scaling it globally. It's rare to find a company whose usage volumes are already massive even though it's only the beginning of a much bigger story."

Insight, based in New York, is focused on investments in software-focused start-ups. Its recent activity in Asia includes the sale of US-based digital book marketplace OverDrive to Japan's Rakuten for $410 million in March, and an investment of an undisclosed amount in Singaporean wealth management firm Wealth-X last year.

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• Topics
• South Asia
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• India
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