CarDekho SEA's $60 mn funding values company at $300 mn

CarDekho SEA, the Southeast Asia business unit of digital automotive solutions provider CarDekho Group, has raised its first external funding round of $60 million, led by growth and private equity investors Navis Capital Partners (Navis) and Dragon Fund at a $300 million valuation. Following this round, the company's cumulative fundraise now stands at over $100 million.

Singapore-based CarDekho SEA offers services including used car finance and refinance loans, dealer inventory funding, and classifieds.

The company intends to use the fresh capital to enhance the group’s existing capabilities in Indonesia used car & bike financing, used car refinancing and classifieds, and to support further expansion into the used auto financing sector in the Philippines, a statement says.

The company, which is betting big on the Southeast Asian region, aims to develop an ecosystem for its distribution partners in the region through existing product offerings like inventory funding for used car dealer or agent partners and accelerate growth through complementary solutions in auto insurance, extended warranties, and electric vehicle financing.

The international arm of CarDekho Group, CarDekho SEA operates across Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. In Indonesia, CarDekho SEA holds a 3% market share in the used auto finance sector and has tied up with over 40 financiers. Regionally, the firm owns and operates brands like OTO Indonesia, Carmudi Philippines, and Zigwheels Philippines.

In terms of growth, CarDekho SEA, launched in 2020, has done over 200,000 disbursements, surpassing $1 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) and has over 50 financier partners and 20,000 dealers and retail agents.

Amit Jain, co-founder and CEO of the CarDekho Group says by replicating its Indian playbook for international markets, the company has been able to “understand and solve” consumer needs across diverse cultures and regions. “This journey isn’t just about expanding our footprint but about bringing meaningful, accessible solutions to people worldwide. This is a shared achievement with our teams, partners, and customers who believe in our mission.”

Navis, a Southeast Asian private equity fund manager, has over $5 billion worth of assets under management, while Dragon Fund, launched in 2023, invests in growth-stage technology and technology-enabled companies. As per Rajendra Pai, Partner at Navis Capital, by enhancing financial inclusion, CarDekho SEA will not only empower consumers but also drive transformative change across the automotive landscape. Dragon Fund’s chief investment officer Ridhi Chaudhary says the fund has closely followed CarDekho Group’s journey in India and is confident that CarDekho SEA will be able to leverage its India playbook in Southeast Asia.

Private equity and venture capital investments rose 4% year-on-year to $4.7 billion in October 2024 compared with $4.5 billion in the same month last year, as per the latest EY and Indian Venture and Alternate Capital Association (IVCA) report. In terms of deal volume, October 2024 saw a 21% increase with 91 deals compared to 75 in October 2023. October 2024 recorded nine large deals (deals with a value greater than $100 million), aggregating $3.3 billion, a 4% decline in value from October 2023 ($3.4 billion across 11 deals). The largest deal of the month involved Temasek acquiring an 18% stake in VFS Global Services from Blackstone for $950 million.

Besides, a total of 984 venture capital (VC) funding deals were recorded during January-October 2024, which was a year-on-year (YoY) improvement of 5.8% in deal volume. The total disclosed funding value of these deals jumped by 44.4% YoY to $9.2 billion during the same period, according to data and analytics company GlobalData.