inDrive, a global platform for mobility and urban services that has recently expanded its footprint in Africa to seven countries, has announced that it has raised $150 million from General Catalyst in an innovative hybrid instrument to fund marketing spend. This includes user acquisition and retention costs.
inDrive will benefit from increased financial flexibility thanks to this new funding, which will also help the business to continue its rapid expansion. Earlier, in the year 2021, General Catalyst took part in inDrive’s $150 million Series C investment round, which was headed by Insight Partners.
Arsen Tomsky, inDrive founder and CEO, said: “We are pleased that General Catalyst has again invested in inDrive, enabling us to maintain our high double-digit growth rates, improve the quality of our offering, and develop new business verticals. inDrive is in a strong financial position and has a choice of financing instruments that best suit its requirements. I believe that this financing reflects General Catalyst’s conviction in our ability to continue to successfully expand into new communities and new business verticals in the coming years.”
General Catalyst said in a statement: “General Catalyst is optimistic inDrive is set for sustained growth, and we are excited to back a business that we believe has a strong mission and benefits so many communities around the world. It’s important to us that the investments we make have a positive impact, and inDrive is well placed to do so.”
inDrive continued its rapid growth in 2022, despite a challenging global macro environment, with an 88% year-on-year increase in gross revenue serving as solid evidence of the business’s resilience.
The number of countries where the company operates reached 47, up from 37 in 2021. inDrive expanded its team to 2,700 employees spread across 17 offices worldwide, with 1,000 newcomers in 2022.
inDrive was the world’s fastest growing international ride-hailing app in 2022, according to data.ai (formerly App Annie).
The app saw a 45% increase in downloads year-on-year, climbing from 42.6 million in 2021 to 61.8 million in 2022 to become the 2nd most downloaded ride-hailing app worldwide based on Google Play and App Store data (China is App Store only).
In 2022, the company launched several new verticals, expanding its offering from passenger and cargo transportation, delivery, and handymen services to include job classifieds and group buying services.
The company recently rebranded from inDriver (Independent Drivers) to inDrive (Inner Drive) to reflect its ambitious mission of Challenging Injustice.
