Metro Bikes raises $12.2mn in new funding

Metro Bikes, a rental start-up for scooters and motorcycles, has raised $12.2 million in a Series A funding round led by Sequoia Capital India and Accel Partners, which will help the start-up develop technologies and expand into newer markets. Vivekananda Hallekere, co-founder and CEO at Bounce, said Metro Bikes, which is run by Wicked Ride Adventure Services Pvt Ltd, also rebranded itself as Bounce “to avoid the confusion of being only present in metro cities”. He said TaxiForSure founder Raghunandan G., an unnamed global fund and a Bengaluru-based high net worth individual also participated in the latest round. The deal is among the largest Series A funding round for a local start-up and an indication of growing investor interest in the estimated $4.5 billion two-wheeler rental market in India. Post the deal, Shailesh Lakhani, Managing Director at Sequoia Capital India, and Anand Daniel, partner at Accel, will join the start-up's board. Hallekere said the company plans to utilise the capital to develop its soon-to-be patented-keyless technology to operate vehicles without a key, focus on markets in Hyderabad and Bengaluru and expand to major metro cities by 2020.