Europe’s Largest Car Rental Marketplace Drivy Raises €31M

Drivy, Europe’s largest car rental marketplace, with 850,000 users across France, Germany and Spain, has just closed a new  €31m investment round. The funding round was led by Cathay Innovation and Nokia Growth Partners (NGP), with the participation of early investors Bpifrance’s Ecotechnologie Fund, Via-ID (Mobivia group) and Index Venture. The additional funding, which brings the total amount raised to €47m, will be used for further international expansion, product innovation and to grow significantly the team across Europe.  

Created in France in 2010 by Paulin Dementhon, Drivy operates also in Germany and Spain. In almost 6 years, it has become the biggest car rental marketplace in Europe, with 850,000 users and a year-on-year growth of over 100%. So far, 1,4 million days of rental were completed with Drivy.  

The service makes it quick and easy for drivers to rent a car when they need one, from nearby car owners. Thanks to a network of 36,000 cars to rent in Europe and a full mobile experience, the service offers the freedom and flexibility of using a car, without the hassle of ownership. Drivy has even gone further by launching Drivy Open in December 2015, a technology which enables drivers to open cars with their smartphones and carry out self-service rentals.

The company will use the investment to expand into new markets: 3 openings are planned in European countries by the end of 2016, including in the United Kingdom. Since its last financing round of €8m in April 2015, Drivy has become the leader on the German market and has expanded its service into Spain, where the startup experienced a growth of 200% over the last two months, with 1,000 cars available.

The funding will also be used to speed up innovation and product development, in order to make users’ experience even more flexible and frictionless. Priority will be given to the deployment of the service Drivy Open in several major European cities in the coming months.

Paulin Dementhon, CEO and Founder of Drivy, said: "Drivy combines the quality of carsharing user experience and the scale of peer-to-peer marketplaces, with 3-digits growth every year. We have met all conditions to accelerate international expansion—great apps, a worldwide insurance partnership, and a strong management team. We will also continue to reduce friction in the rental process thanks to mobile and telematics, with Drivy Open self-service rentals spearheading this effort."

"Drivy is undoubtedly the most promising company in the peer-to-peer car hire industry worldwide," said both Ming-Po Cai, President of Cathay Capital, and Jacky Abitbol, Partner at Cathay Innovation. "We are proud that Cathay Innovation is co-leading this new round of financing along with such renowned investors as Nokia Growth Partners. We believe our strong commitment in the transportation business will be strategic for the long term development and look forward to help Paulin and his team turning Drivy into a global leader." 

Bo Ilsoe, Partner at NGP added: "Drivy has what we look for in a company; a great product, a proven business model and exceptional management team that has the potential to disrupt the market it operates in. We are thrilled to support Paulin and the Drivy team and continue our commitment to investing in France."

About Drivy

Drivy is the leading car rental marketplace in Europe. The service allows its users to rent people’s cars everywhere within walking distance of home whenever they need one: whether it is to go away for a weekend, attend a business meeting or move house. The service includes a comprehensive insurance coverage to ensure safe rentals. Drivy provides a full mobile experience, from booking a car to check-in and check-out, and has recently launched Drivy Open, a technology which enables people to open cars with their smartphones and carry out self-service rentals. Created in 2010 in France by Paulin Dementhon, Drivy also operates in Germany and Spain with a total of 36,000 cars to rent and 850,000 users. Drivy’s ambition is to make car rental much more efficient than personal car ownership.