Estonian micro-mobility scaleup Bolt has announced closing €600 million funding round, increasing Bolt’s valuation to more than €4 billion. The funds will be used to boost their new grocery delivery service, Bolt Market, and accelerate their expansion of existing mobility and delivery products.
The funds were raised from a range of investors including Sequoia, Tekne, and Ghisallo, G Squared, D1 Capital, and Naya.
Founded by Markus Villig in 2013, Bolt started out as a ride-sharing taxi app, and has more than 50 million customers in over 40 countries. In February of this year, Bolt announced a partnership with Google to appear in the Google Map’s journey planner, giving it even more visibility, and is also speedily growing across Africa. All Bolt rides in Europe are carbon-neutral as part of Bolt’s Green Plan, a long-term commitment to reduce the ecological footprint of the company.
In addition to their core ride-hailing product, they now offer a car-sharing service, Bolt Drive, and scooter and e-bike sharing. Their delivery services include Bolt Food, which enables customers to order meals from restaurants, and the most recent addition to Bolt’s ecosystem is a grocery delivery service, Bolt Market.
Bolt Market will be launched in 10 European countries over the next few months, including the Baltics and Central Europe, Sweden, Portugal, Croatia, and Romania.
Markus Villig, CEO at Bolt, commented: “Bolt’s mission is to make urban travel affordable and sustainable. We are building a future where people are not forced to buy cars that cause traffic and pollution, but use on-demand transport when they need it. After seven years of relentless execution, Bolt’s mobility and delivery products offer a better alternative to almost every use case a car serves. I’m thrilled to bring these products to millions of customers around Europe and Africa, taking the emphasis off cars and giving cities back to the people.”
