Car rental platform Bage receives USD 3.7M for Series A
Bage
Founded in: 2016
Founder: Sun Yang
Financing status: RMB 25 million (USD 3.7 million) for Series A financing in 2017
Car rental platform Bage, on July 18, received USD 3.7 million for their Series A financing round to help them expand to more cities across China.
The concept of a sharing economy is becoming extremely popular in China with many entrepreneurs starting their own business in the space and many venture capital firms pouring capital into them. For existing car rental platforms such as eHi, Shenzhou and some others, there is an inconvenience built into their current business models. For example, even though customers are able to place orders online, they still have to pick up their rentals from the corresponding companies’ offline stores.
Bage is an electric car rental platform that provides customers with a way to rent a car on an hourly basis just like renting a bike. Once users download Bages’ app and upload their identity information, they can enjoy its flexible car rental service. Currently Bage operates in several cities, including Beijing, Tangshan, Guangzhou, and so on. The advantage of using Bage is that customers don’t need to return them to Bages’ offline stores, instead, customers are supposed to leave the cars in nearby parking spaces.
Founded in 2016 in Beijing, Bage currently has more than 3000 electric cars available for rent on its platform. And, some of its employees are in charge of transferring these cars from parking spaces with high fees to one with lower fees. As well as, moving cars from areas of low foot traffic to those that are more crowded.
This Series A financing round was from a group of investors, namely Legend Star. The capital will be used to expand the business to new cities in China, as well as, improve its operational efficiency.
Online car trading platform Zhuantou Automobile receives USD 5.9M for Series A+
Zhuantou Automobile
Founder: Xia Jing
Founded in: 2015
Financing status: RMB 40 million (USD 5.9 million) for Series A+ financing in 2017
Online car trading platform Zhuantou Automobile, on July 18, received USD 5.9M for Series A+ financing round for market expansions.
Zhuantou Automobile is an online car trading platform that combines car trading with financial services and big data technologies. The platform collects information on auto shows across China in order to attract potential online customers. On top of that, not only does Zhuantou launch its own auto shows, it provides customers with test-driving services and helps customers to easily complete the purchase process.
The data collected from its online platform helps the company determine when and where to launch their auto shows. It also facilitates their car sales by enabling better target advertising based off an increased understanding of customers’ car preferences.
Founded in 2015 in Guangxi, its services currently cover 23 cities in China. Last year, it attracted more than one million customers to its auto show and sold 100,000 cars on its platform.
This new financing round was from China Galaxy. The company plans to use the funds to expand its market influence for new customers, as well as, spend more money on the research and development of big data technology in order to boost its sales.
（Top photo from 58pic.com）
