Rapido Secures $200 Million in Funding Led by WestBridge, Takes Valuation to $1.1 Billion

Rapido, the mobility start-up has raised $200 million in a funding round led by existing investor WestBridge Capital, taking the company's valuation to $1.1 billion. This is as per the Economic Times.

The funding round saw the participation of Venture Capital fund Nexus Venture Partners, with new backers Think Investments and New York-based Invus Opportunities.

Aravind Sanka, Rapido's CEO, reportedly told ET that the newly procured funds will be used to expand Rapido's newly launched four-wheeler taxi service, rivalling Ola, Uber, and Namma Yatri.

The ride-hailing platform will reportedly also look into a foray into in-demand quick commerce delivery space as it hopes to make use of its two-wheeler fleet for hyperlocal deliveries, as per Aravind Sanka.

Sanka reportedly said that the latest fundraiser comes at the back of a strong growth that we've clocked over the last two years, claiming that Rapido has become the market leader in the bike-taxi segment.

Aravind Sanka said that Rapido is taking 2.3-2.5 million orders every day, of which 7% is from business-to-business (B2B). Under the B2B section, Rapido food-delivery orders for Swiggy during lean hours for bike-taxi operations. It has brought in ONDC to help it assist in its logistics

Rapido, on July 29, reportedly raised $120 million from WestBridge as part of a larger funding round as per ET.

Rapido reportedly crossed $1 billion gross merchandise value (GMV) mark, primarily driven by its expansion into new cities and automobile sections such as four-wheeler cabs and auto-rickshaws.

Rapido was founded in 2015 by Aravind Sanka, Pavan Guntupalli, and Rishikesh SR. The ride-hailing platform raised $180 million in a Series D funding round in April 2022, led by Swiggy, which valued the mobility startup at $800 million.