Posted by Singapore, 15 September 2021 – Carousell Group, the leading classifieds group in Greater Southeast Asia, today announced that it has secured an investment of US$100 million to accelerate its leadership in the region, and to reimagine the classifieds experience with a focus on convenience and trust, to make secondhand the first choice.
This round of funding, led by STIC Investments, a leading Korean private equity that invests across Asia, marks a significant milestone that will bring Carousell’s valuation to US$1.1 billion. The investment will power the group’s ambitions to redefine commerce for secondhand goods and automobiles in an increasingly digitally savvy, affluent and sustainability-conscious region.
“The pandemic has shown us that our mission to inspire the world to start selling and buying secondhand is more relevant than ever. People in the community are using our platforms to make more possible for each other—through shared passions, making ends meet, affording what they need, or simply because it is more sustainable. We believe that the accelerated adoption of digital experiences is an opportunity for us to double down on our recommerce efforts with a focus on convenience and trust, to unlock step-change growth in our community,” said Quek Siu Rui, Co-founder and CEO of Carousell. “STIC’s investment is a validation of our mission and strategic direction. We’ll deepen our investments in recommerce across more categories and markets, and will continue to seek opportunistic acquisitions in scaling up.”
“We have been monitoring Carousell as one of the leading platforms in Greater Southeast Asia, and are excited to partner up with a significant stake in its growth story,” said Jason Cho, Managing Director of STIC Investments. “Carousell continues to achieve tremendous user growth as they transform the recommerce market, adding new features that are focused on creating trusted marketplaces and enhancing overall user experience. We are highly confident that Carousell will be at the center of the secondhand economy in this region at a time when an increasing number of socio-economic and environmentally conscious consumers are shifting towards a circular economy”. As part of the funding round, Mr. Cho will join the Carousell Board of Directors.
Since its founding in 2012, the Group serves a community of tens of millions of users across eight markets in Greater Southeast Asia under the brands Carousell, Mudah.my, Cho Tot and OneKyat. Carousell’s pioneering mobile-first approach reignited the classifieds space, making selling and buying easier and proving to be an essential one-stop shop across all categories.
“We have grown way beyond categories like fashion, electronics and general goods,” said Siu Rui, “As the region becomes more affluent, people want to enjoy the finer things in life. We are looking at authentication capabilities for higher-value products, including luxury goods and cars. Our goal is to make transacting in a secondhand marketplace as convenient and trusted as any e-commerce platform so that secondhand can truly be the first choice.“
This year alone, Carousell has piloted a Certified Mobiles programme in Singapore, offering a 12-month warranty for used mobile phones to offer users a like-new experience at secondhand prices, and launched integrated shipping with PosLaju (the Malaysia national postal service) to provide contactless transaction options for sellers and buyers during the Movement Control Order. Carousell Auto Group, which was formed earlier this year to leverage its regional leadership position in car classifieds, has in a short period rolled out a Certified Autos programme in Malaysia that achieved the largest inventory of certified cars in the country, with other key markets to follow.
“We are grateful and privileged to have investors, teammates and users who believe in our mission and our journey in building a meaningful and enduring company,” Siu Rui added.
Carousell Group成功從STIC Investments籌募1億美元以在大東南亞地區加快發展分類買賣平台4.0
估值11億美元，分類買賣的區域領導者將繼續鞏固其在生活精品、汽車和房地產垂直領域的領先地位，並加快向再貿易的交易推送
新加坡 – Media OutReach – 2021 年 9 月 15 日 – 大東南亞地區領先的分類買賣平台集團Carousell 旋轉拍賣集團今天宣佈已獲得1億美元投資，以加快其在大東南亞地區的領導地位，並以方便和信任為焦點重新構建分類買賣體驗，將二手產品作為首選。
本輪融資由亞洲投資的領先韓國私募股權公司STIC Investments領投。這次融資標誌著重要的里程碑，使Carousell的估值達到11億美元。這筆投資將推動集團在逐步數碼化、富裕和具有可持續性意識的地區，重新定義二手商品和汽車商業的願景。
Carousell聯合創辦人兼集團行政總裁Quek Siu Rui郭修瑞表示：「疫情反映我們推動世界開始買賣二手商品的使命變得前所未有更加重要。用戶社群使用我們的平台互相製造無限可能的機會—和擁有共同愛好的用戶建立友誼、使用平台來維持生計、負擔他們需要的東西，或單單因為二手購物可推動更持續的發展。我們相信，加快應用數碼體驗為我們再貿易的工作帶來機遇，並以方便和信任為焦點，從而在我們的社區中實現階梯式增長。」郭先生續說：「STIC的投資反映我們的使命和策略方向。我們將進一步投入不同類別和市場的循環經濟 投資，並將繼續尋求機會性收購以擴大規模。」
STIC Investments董事總經理Jason Cho表示：「我們一直將Carousell視為大東南亞區領先的平台之一，並很高興能在其增長旅程中成為重要持份者合作。Carousell在改造再貿易市場的過程中繼續實現了龐大的用戶人數增長，並增加了專注創建可信市場和加強整體用戶體驗的新功能。現時有愈來愈多的社會經濟和環境意識消費者正逐步轉向循環經濟，因此我們對Carousell成為大東南亞地區二手經濟中心充滿信心。」Jason Cho將加入Carousell董事會，作為本輪融資的一部分。
自2012年成立以來，該集團以Carousell、Mudah.my、Cho Tot和OneKyat品牌為大東南亞八大市場數千萬用戶提供服務。Carousell開創性的移動優先方法重新激起分類買賣的發展空間，令買賣過程變得更加容易，並證明是所有類別中必備的一站式商店。
郭先生指：「我們已經超越了時尚、電子產品和一般商品等類別。隨著大東南亞地區變得更加富裕，人們希望在生活享受更美好的事物。我們正尋求高價值產品的驗證功能，包括奢侈品和汽車。我們的目標是讓在二手市場上的交易像任何電子商務平台一樣方便和值得信賴，讓二手產品成為真正的首選。」
單是今年，Carousell就在新加坡試行了認證手機計劃，為二手手機提供12個月保養，以二手價格為用戶提供全新體驗，並與PosLaju（馬來西亞國家郵政服務）推出了綜合運輸，在行動管制令期間為買賣雙方提供非接觸式的交易選項。Carousell Auto Group於今年較早時間成立，旨在利用其在汽車分類買賣領域的區域領先地位，在短時間內在馬來西亞推出了認證汽車計劃，實現馬來西亞最大規模的認證汽車庫存，其他主要市場也緊隨其後。
郭先生指：「我們很高興並榮幸投資者、團隊成員和用戶相信我們的使命，與我們共同建立具有意義和持久發展的公司旅程。」
About Carousell Group | 關於Carousell Group
Carousell is the leading classifieds group in Greater Southeast Asia on a mission to inspire the world to start selling, and to make secondhand the first choice. Founded in August 2012 in Singapore, the group has a leading presence in eight markets under the brands Carousell, Mudah.my, Cho Tot and OneKyat, serving tens of millions of monthly active users. Carousell is backed by leading investors including Telenor Group, Rakuten Ventures, Naver, STIC Investments and Sequoia Capital India. Visit here for more information.
Carousell Group是大東南亞區領先的分類買賣集團，使命是鼓勵全球開始銷售，使二手產品成為首選。該集團於2012年8月在新加坡成立，以Carousell、Mudah.my、Cho Tot和OneKyat品牌在八大市場中處於領先地位，每月為數千萬活躍用戶提供服務。Carousell獲得了主要投資者的支持，包括Telenor Group、Rakuten Ventures、Naver、STIC Investments和Sequoia Capital India。瀏覽此處了解更多。
About STIC Investments | 關於STIC Investments
STIC Investments, Inc. is one of the largest and most experienced private equity firms in Korea. STIC seeks to create growth and prosperity in economies across Asia through investing in companies that engage in promising businesses. Starting its operations as a venture capital firm in 1999, STIC is now renowned as a leading private equity firm in Korea with a proven 22-year track record and abundant investment experience in multiple business cycles. STIC has circa US$5 billion AUM, 40 investment professionals and invested in more than 80 companies. Its global investor base includes sovereign wealth funds, public pension funds, insurance companies, financial institutions, family offices, endowments, foundations, and fund of funds from Korea, Southeast Asia, Middle East, and Europe. Visit here for more information.
STIC Investments, Inc.是韓國規模最大、經驗最豐富的私募股權公司之一。STIC尋求透過投資從事有遠景業務的公司，在亞洲各地的經濟體中創造經濟增長及繁榮。STIC 於1999年以風險投資公司開始經營，現已成為韓國領先的私募股權公司，擁有22年的輝煌業績，並在多個商業周期中具備豐富投資經驗。STIC擁有約50億美元資產管理規模、40名投資專業人士，並投資了超過80間公司。STIC的全球投資者包括來自韓國、東南亞、中東和歐洲的主權財富基金、公共養老基金、保險公司、金融機構、家族辦公室、捐募、基金會和母基金。瀏覽此處了解更多。
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