Dealer Tech & Vehicle Commerce:
Ares is buying Capital Automotive, which provides financing options to car dealerships in need of facility renovations and expansions, in $3.8 Billion Deal. (Link to article)MundiMoto Group, an online motorcycle buying and selling startup, has raised $22.6 million (€20 million) to expand its platform beyond its home country of Spain and into Europe, starting with Italy and Holland. The company plans to hire 50 engineers and 250 new employees to advance the technology product and support international expansion. (Link to article)
Vehicle Connectivity & Cyber Security:
Shift5 announced a $50 million Series B round. The company attempts to defend systems critical to transportation networks. Shift5’s latest round of funding lands just a few months after its $20 million Series A raise, buoyed by several million-dollar deals last year during which the company doubled its headcount. The Series B round was led by Insight Partners. (Link to article)Motorq, the leading connected car API company, has raised $40 million in its Series B round of funding. The round was led by Insight Partners, with participation from existing investors including Story Ventures, FM Capital, Monta Vista Capital and Avanta Ventures. (Link to article)
Shared Mobility & Subscription:
Copenhagen-based Cogo has acquired eScoot, a leading shared mobility aggregator in Central Europe. Together, Cogo and eScoot have helped more than half a million users in over 100 countries find and compare shared electric scooters, bikes, cars and models in their city. (Link to article)GoTo Global, an Israeli mobility company that offers shared micromobility and car-sharing services in Spain, Israel, Malta and Germany, is going public on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) through a merger with shell company Nera Tech Media. (Link to Article)Irish co-founded electric-car rental company UFODRIVE has raised $19 million (€16.75 million) in a funding round co-led by Hertz. (Link to article)
Electrification:
Britishvolt will launch a Series C funding round with a starting investment of 40 million pounds ($54 million) from mining giant Glencore. The electric vehicle battery startup aims to raise around 200 million pounds ($135 million) in the funding round, some of which will go toward developing its planned battery factory in northern England and a research and development center. (Link to article)ACTON, a U.S. startup that provides electric micromobility vehicles and the cloud-based software infrastructure to run shared fleets for cities and operators, has just acquired DUCKT, an Estonian docking and charging infrastructure startup, a move that Acton says will help it to beef up its product offerings, especially for cities. (Link to article)Australia-based electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure company Jett Charge is set to rapidly expand after closing a $25 million Series B funding round, including a $6.1 million contribution from the Australian government. (Link to article)
Autonomy:
MORAI Inc., which provides autonomous vehicle developers with automotive simulation tools to verify the safety and reliability of self-driving systems, has raised $20.8 million (25 billion KRW) in a Series B funding round as it wants to increase its global presence, specifically into the U.S., Germany, Japan and Singapore. (Link to article)Trunk Tech, a Chinese autonomous truck technology startup backed by EV maker Nio, raised an undisclosed amount in its Series B, the company announced Wednesday. The round was led by state-owned automaker BAIC, which is also partnering with ride-hailing giant Didi to get a fleet of self-driving taxis on public roads by 2025. (Link to article)
Vehicle Assembly, Supply Chain & Logistics:
HARMAN International, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, focused on connected technologies for automotive, consumer and enterprise markets, announced the acquisition of Apostera, a Germany-based automotive technology company. (Link to article)For an industry that seems to be in desperate need of truck drivers to meet peak volume demands, Haul has arrived at the right time. The on-demand truck driver has closed a $10 million funding round led by B Capital Group. Haul’s new funding adds to a $3 million seed round announced in February 2021. (Link to article)CelLink Corporation, a California startup with a product that replaces traditional wiring harnesses, said it has closed a $250 million funding round backed by several large auto industry players. (Link to article)TruKKer, a Middle Eastern startup focused on logistics in the land freight sector, raised $96 million in fresh financing from investors including Abu Dhabi wealth funds ADQ and Mubadala. (Link to article)
