Carsome Group, which operates a Southeast Asian used-car online marketplace, has raised almost $300 million in a financing round led by funds linked to Temasek Holdings Pte and Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
65 Equity Partners and SeaTown Holdings Pte. – both backed by Temasek – and Qatar Investment Authority are among investors that participated in the fundraising by Carsome, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private.
Malaysia’s most valuable technology startup is planning an initial public offering in the U.S. later this year, one of the people said. Representatives for Carsome, 65 Equity Partners, SeaTown and QIA didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Carsome started gauging investor interest in November and was seeking to raise about $200 million, Bloomberg News reported at the time. In a September statement, it said it mopped up $170 million in a series D2 round at a $1.3 billion valuation.
Founded in 2015, the company has expanded into Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. The company works with more than 8,000 dealers and handles more than 100,000 transactions on an annualized basis, according to its website.
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