Almost six months has passed since Israeli mobility Unicorn, Gett, raised $100 million, while keeping hush on the names of the participants in the round. The company only noted that the round was funded by both existing and new investors. Now, Gett announces a $15 million expansion from Pelham Capital and existing investors to the 2020 funding round, bringing the company’s total raised funds to $765 million.
IPO still on the shelf?
Over the last few years, Gett is primarily focusing on the business sector, with a SaaS platform that pairs organizational customers with car services. By taking the B2B route, Gett is able to differentiate itself from mobility giants controlling the B2C market. This gives the Israeli company a leg up over their much larger competitors. Over the years, Gett has raised hundreds of millions of dollars, igniting talk over the past two years of a coveted New York IPO.
In 2019, Gett raised almost $200 million. At the time CEO and co-Founder Dave Waiser told TechCrunch that it was probably the last round before going public. Nevertheless, the 2019 or 2020 planned move to Wall Street has been put on pause. Obviously, the COVID pandemic plays ‘party pooper’ here, by keeping people working from home, limiting, and even turning dangerous, nonessential travel - and the global crisis doesn’t seem like its coming to an end.
The company stated that the expansion funds will help further develop the SaaS platform and penetrate new markets. “The last year has been incredibly difficult for the hospitality and mobility industries, but we are happy to close 2020 within our budgets and operationally profitable.”
You may remember that in November 2019, the company officially shut down its car service, Juno - which was acquired just two years earlier for $200 million. Gett acquired Juno with the aim of penetrating the U.S. shared ride market, which is mostly controlled by Uber and Lyft. Though unsuccessful, after closing Juno, the company announced a collaboration with rival Lyft. As the ink dried, Gett reported that it’s turning focus to the B2B sector, preparing for a future IPO and a transition to profitability. Currently, the company is defining the added cash as “part of company expansion and fortification of strategic partnerships.”