Europcar Group invests in Dutch peer-to-peer car sharing provider SnappCar
14 June 2017
14 June 2017
Europcar Group has announced a 20% minority investment in SnappCar, a peer-to-peer car sharing service, through its ′Lab’ innovation arm. This investment is in line with Europcar’s plans to provide alternatives to car ownership through a portfolio of solutions. SnappCar’s ambition is to decrease the numbers of owned cars on the roads by 5 million by 2022.
SnappCar is a Dutch scale-up and social enterprise created in 2011. It is the second largest international peer-to-peer car sharing player in Europe with more than 250,000 customers sharing more than 30,000 cars available on its platform. It operates in the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden with the intention to expand to new markets.
With this investment, Europcar joins Snappcar’s consortium of existing shareholders including AutoBinck Group and the Danish startup Studio Founders. The total amount raised in the investment round is €10 million.
Through the investment, SnappCar is seeking to expand geographically within Europe and further improve and innovate its platform usage and services for its members by introducing ′keyless technology’; for example, making it possible to open a car through the SnappCar app.
For Europcar Group, this minority investment is an opportunity to develop its mobility offer and enlarge its customer base. The company believes peer2peer solutions have a role to play in cities, where their use can complement car sharing schemes, as well as operating in areas where car sharing solutions are currently not economically sustainable. Peer-to-peer car sharing platforms have a strong need for car availability, and with an average fleet of around 214,000 vehicles in 2016, Europcar believes it can play a significant role.
′We are delighted to be acquiring a stake in SnappCar’s capital. The Lab invested in this company as it sees its potential of growth, allowing the Group to enrich its mobility offers and to target new types of customers. We see a great opportunity to help this company accelerate its development of car sharing with a peer-to-peer platform throughout Europe’ said Sheila Struyck, managing director of the New Mobility Business Unit and Europcar ‘Lablord.’
Snappcar’s co-founder and CEO Victor van Tol added: ′We very much welcome Europcar as a shareholder and partner on our way to conquer Europe. Just like Autobinck Group, Europcar has tremendously valuable expertise and knowledge of the current mobility market. Together we can maximize SnappCar’s impact in Europe and, at the same time, further improve and innovate our platform and services for our members.’
Photograph courtesy of Europcar Group
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