Israeli startup Shareitt, which developed an app to sell second hand products, announced a $2 million Seed investment. The round included private investors from Israel, Australia, and the U.S.

Bazaar 2.0

Shareitt developed a social P2P commerce platform that’s based on Shareitt coins rather than real money. The company’s marketplace app allows for users to buy and sell second hand items in exchange for Shareitt coins, which can be used to buy other products from other sellers.

The company reports that the goal of the platform is to encourage users to turn the incredible amount of unused household items into cash, and then use the dedicated coins to buy other possibly more needed items.

CEO and co-founder Michael Malul explained in a conversation with Geektime that “the idea behind the product is smart marketplace management. We can control the incoming and outgoing coins, increase usage by rewarding users with coins and encouraging them to buy something else with them. Essentially, we aim for a constant equilibrium.”

Malul notes that the marketplace coins carry real-world monetary value. He claims that the coins used in the company’s platform “rate a true value and constitute as a debtless wallet.”

Users are awarded coins just for signing up, and are immediately able to start purchasing items through the marketplace. They can also earn more Shareitt coins by selling items, of course, or by referring friends to join the marketplace.

Malul also talked about the impact of the COVID crisis, saying that “it exposed the existing market need, and the masses of people looking exactly for a product like we provide - a virtual “garage sale”, where people can turn unused items into something they may actually need and use.”

The company was founded in 2019 by Malul and Arieh Ben-David. Shareitt currently has 12 employees based in the company’s Tel Aviv headquarters. Shareitt reports that it will invest the capital in further advancing the product and in 2021 market expansion plans.