TVS Motors along with Swiggy started investing in bike-taxi platform Rapido. Rapido has raised $180 million in a series-D round with Swiggy and TVs along with current investors Westbridge, Nexus Ventures, and Shell Ventures. The startup business is said to be valued at around $800 million. Rapido has gained around $130 million before this round.
Rapido intends to use the capital to improve its technology, teams in various areas and overall supply to cover more metros, tier-1, tier-2, and tier-3 cities. "Rapido will spend these funds in all three of its categories — bike-taxi, car, and delivery — to boost captain earnings and the customer experience in the over 100 locations where it operates," the business stated.
Swiggy's involvement in this financing will also capitalize on the two firms' synergies, and Rapido stated that it will bring increased earnings for both Swiggy's delivery executives and Rapido's captains.
"We look forward to learning from Swiggy's expertise as we grow out across the country and improve the experience of our captains/customers, who are the backbone of our business." TVS Motor, who are highly passionate about EVs and the future of transportation, will assist us with our future growth," stated Aravind Sanka, co-founder of Rapido.
Rapido has more than 25 million customers and 1.5 million 'captains' (driver-partners). You can use the app to hire bike taxis and vehicles.