Vietnam-based OKXE.vn, an online marketplace for motorcycles, has raised $5.5 million in a Series A funding round led by South Korean venture capital firm Partners Investment.
The round was backed by South Korean investors including IMM Investment Corp, KB Investment, Korea Omega Investment Corp, HB Investment, and SB Partners, OKXE founder and CEO Wooseok Kim told DealStreetAsia.
The startup will use the Series A proceeds to expand to other countries in Southeast Asia.
“Our priority is developing the quality of service and becoming the number one service provider in Vietnam. At the same time, we are looking for opportunities in other countries including Indonesia and Thailand,” Kim said.
OKXE began its beta operations in Vietnam in 2018 and launched officially one year later. The company claims 1,300 motorcycles are either bought or sold on its platform every month.
The Vietnam market offers a lot of potential with 45 million motorbikes on the road and most families owning at least two motorbikes. Given that Ho Chi Minh City is the “capital city of motorcycles,” Kim said Vietnam was the ideal place to launch his venture.
“For startups, it is not easy to find opportunities for targeting mature markets. I prefer the Southeast Asia market to the Korean market due to the size of the market and the speed at which it is changing,” Kim had told us in an interview earlier.