DST, a provider of charging and management solutions for new energy vehicles, has raked in $100 million in its Series C round led by Ingka Holding B.V., the parent company of Swedish furniture major IKEA.
New investors SMRT Ventures and Runxin Xinguanxiang Industry Fund joined the round along with return backers Matrix Partners China and Bojiang Capital. Chinese investment bank Taihecap facilitated the transaction, it said in a WeChat post.
In January this year, DST had secured the first tranche of its Series C round, dubbed Series C1, from Japanese conglomerate ITOCHU Corporation, US private equity firm Olympus Capital and Hong Kong-based Jeneration Capital.
DST plans to use the proceeds to spruce up its digital systems, offline maintenance management and global business development.
Established in 2015, DST has been engaged in developing full-stack logistics services for NEVs based on its digital platform with an extensive network of offline support centers. To date, DST has serviced over 2,500 clients. It currently operates and manages a fleet of close to 40,000 EVs covering 200 cities in China. DST’s network covers 8000+ service stations, 150,000 charging piles and 400+ maintenance suppliers, per a company statement.
Commenting on Ingka’s minority investment in DST, Ingka Investments managing director Krister Mattsson said, in a statement, “IKEA Retail China has been closely working with DST since 2019, in cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Changsha and Zhengzhou. Their EV vehicles provide one-third of transport capacity for IKEA customers and have supported cities like Shanghai in already achieving 100% electric deliveries.”