UK car finance fintech Carmoola has raised £8.5 million in a Series A funding round and secured another £95 million through a debt facility.
The round was led by QED Investors, with participation from existing investors VentureFriends and InMotion Ventures, the investment arm of Jaguar Land Rover. NatWest provided the debt facility.
Launched last year, Carmoola offers a "neo car finance” product that promises to reduce the time taken to complete a car purchase from days to minutes.
The firm has developed proprietary technology and systems for a streamlined process that provides buyers with a budget, generates a free history check on the car, and allows payment to be made both instantly online and at the showroom within just 60 seconds using a Carmoola virtual card.
Carmoola CEO Aidan Rushby says: "Used-car finance couldn’t be more ready for a fintech revolution. Consumers want the freedom to go shopping anywhere, knowing what they can spend, without sending off reams of forms and payslips.
“Frustrated consumers are being put in a corner with excessive rates, manipulated commission, and poor customer service, but it’s the very process of getting finance that is at the heart of the problem.
"It’s full of paperwork, lengthy processes, and lack of certainty, but most importantly, car finance is obtained after the consumer has fallen in love with the car they want, which wholly puts them on the back foot. Until now, that is.”