Vietnam-based mobility startup Be Group has raised 739.5 billion dong ($30.3 million) from local brokerage house VPBank Securities in a new funding round, per an announcement.
Upon completion of the deal, VPBank Securities, a subsidiary of commercial lender VPBank—Be’s strategic partner—will become a minority shareholder of Be Holdings, the parent company of Be Group.
Be said the new investment will continue to support its goal of ascending as the top multi-service consumer platform in Vietnam.
The company will accelerate its expansion and comprehensively elevate its ride-hailing, delivery, and digital finance services while exploring new markets and services within the consumer and transportation sectors, it added.
Be expects to be EBITDA-positive in the 2024 financial year. Its gross merchandise volume (GMV) grew nearly 5 times between 2021 and 2023, while monthly EBITDA loss narrowed by the same pace to reach a low single-digit percentage by the end of 2023.
The company said it aimed to reach 20 million users, deliver 1 billion rides on its platform, and surpass $200 million in annual gross revenue by 2026.
After five years of establishment, Be claims to have over 300,000 drivers across 40 cities and provinces across Vietnam. It is the biggest local mobility and consumer technology business with a 35% ride-hailing market share. In 2023 alone, the company operated over 120 million rides.
Before the funding from VPBank Securities, Be raised an undisclosed amount from Green and Smart Mobility, a division of the country’s largest conglomerate Vingroup, in early 2023.
In 2022, the technology startup secured a loan facility of $60 million from Deutsche Bank, which can be upsized up to $100 million. It was planning to raise as much as $100 million in equity funding following the debt financing.
Vietnam’s digital economy is one of the fastest growing in Southeast Asia, expected to hit $43 billion in 2025 from $30 billion last year, according to the SEA e-Conomy 2023 report. Of that, transport, food and online travel represent 16% and 21% compound annual growth rates between 2023 and 2025, respectively. Even higher growth is seen in digital financial services adoption.
However, competition has been stiff. Several global players have left the market, such as Uber and Woowa Brothers while a number of local startups have struggled to expand or raise more capital.