South Africa's Planet42 raises $100M to expand its car subscription service globally

South African car subscription company, Planet42, has raised $100 million in a mix of equity and debt financing to scale its business and provide affordable car access to people excluded from traditional car financing.

Founded in Estonia, Planet42 offers rent-to-buy car subscriptions and uses proprietary scoring algorithms to assess risk in underbanked customer segments, helping customers find suitable cars and financing solutions. According to the company, 89% of customers served so far would have had no other means of gaining access to a personal vehicle.

Planet42 has expanded its dealer network from 700 in 2021 to 1,000 dealerships and has purchased over 12,000 cars for its customers in South Africa and Mexico, with plans to provide a million cars globally.

The funding will allow the six-year-old startup to tackle transport inequality on a global scale, providing more opportunities for jobs, education, and public services to emerging markets' wage-earning workers. Planet42 plans to use the new capital to increase its presence in new and existing markets while exploring new mobility offerings.

The funding round was led by Naspers Foundry, an early-stage investment vehicle of Naspers, alongside ARS Holdings, which co-led the $15 million equity round, and Rivonia Road Capital, which provided a $75 million credit facility. Private investors also contributed $10 million in debt funding.