App-based two-wheeler rental startup Bounce, run by Wickedride Adventure Services Pvt. Ltd, has raised ₹692.39 crore ($97 million) in a Series D round led by Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin’s venture capital fund B Capital, according to documents sourced from business intelligence platform Paper.vc.
Its existing investors, including Sequoia Capital, Accel Partners India and Chiratae Partners, besides new investors Omidyar Network, Vistra ITCL, SCI Investments and Qualcomm Ventures, also participated in the round, filings with the ministry of company affairs (MCA) showed.
The Bengaluru-based startup was valued at $450 million in the current round, according to a person directly aware of the deal, requesting anonymity. In June 2019, Bounce was valued at $200 million during its $72-million Series C round.
Bounce reported a ten-fold increase in losses during the financial year ended March 2019 to ₹70.6 crore, according to recent filings with the MCA. In FY19, it also reported a three-fold increase in revenue to ₹14 crore. The startup spent ₹87 crore in FY19, a seven-fold jump compared to ₹12.5 crore in total expenses reported in FY18.
The startup offers scooter rental in two formats—a per-hour rental option and a dockless two-wheeler sharing option —largely aimed at daily commuters. Users can pick up and drop the vehicle within city limits. Last October, Bounce had crossed 100,000 daily rides in Bengaluru.
Bounce owns around 13,000 two-wheelers in Bengaluru of which, approximately 10,000 are for the dockless format. It is present in 35 cities, having recently launching its services in Hyderabad.
This article was first published on livemint.com