Bike-taxi platform Rapido raises $52 million in latest round of funding

Bike-taxi platform Rapido on Monday, August 16, announced it has secured $52 million in its latest round of funding, which it will use to make strategic investments in cutting-edge innovations, technology, people and supply.

The company said its auto service that launched in 26 cities has recorded a growth of four times and, overall, it has witnessed a strong recovery of 85% as compared to pre-COVID-19.

"Today, Rapido is the largest bike taxi player in the country operating in around 100 cities. From 15 million users in the last two years, we now plan to increase that number to 50 million in the next 18 months and continue providing affordable transportation for the masses," said Aravind Sanka, Co-Founder, Rapido.

The new funding round saw participation from new investors including Shell Ventures; Yamaha, Kunal Shah, Founder, CRED; Amarjit Singh Batra, CEO, Spotify India; and Positive Moves Consulting.

The round also saw existing investors Pawan Munjal, Hero Group, Westbridge, Nexus Venture and Everblue Management taking part.

The company previously raised total funding of $80 million from various investors, including Westbridge AIF, Nexus Ventures, Sabre Investment, Skycatcher LLC, Bace Fund, Integrated Growth Capital, among others.

The company has grown ten times in FY 2020.

In October 2020, Rapido had launched its auto services in 14 cities across 10 states. This service allows commuters to book autos for their everyday commute from the comfort and safety of their home.

Rapido had said that it aims to bring standardisation to the pricing of the services offered for the auto drivers and customers. "Autos have emerged as a preferred way of commuting post the COVID-19 pandemic after bike taxis. While the auto service industry is highly penetrated, it has only 5% of its existing market online,'' Aravind Sanka, Co-Founder, Rapido, had said in a statement.