13th November 2015, Mumbai: Marking the biggest consolidation so far in the digital automotive space in the country, India’s leading online auto platforms, CarTrade and CarWale, have entered into a definitive merger agreement in a transaction that will result in the combination of the two businesses.As part of the transaction, Axel Springer, the leading digital publisher in Europe, is selling its majority stake in CarWale to CarTrade.Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
CarTrade and CarWale complement each other, with CarWale’s primary strength in new cars and CarTrade’s clear focus on used cars. Together, the combined company will become the clear leaders in both new and used cars.
The two companies combined have over 32 million visits in a month, work with approximately 9,000 new and used car dealer partners and connect car manufacturers with car buyers.The platforms list more then 225,000 used cars for sale. The internet today is the single largest source of consumersfor car dealers and CarTrade and CarWale jointly contribute a majority of all online sales to car dealers and car OEMs.
Vinay Sanghi, Founder and CEO, CarTrade, said, “We firmly believe that the combination of CarTrade and CarWalewill further strengthen our leadership in the new and used cars space. We can now direct our joint resources towards developing better products to enhance user experience.
Commenting on thetransaction, Mohit Dubey, CEO and Co-Founder, CarWale said, “With this combination, we are one step closer to delivering a more comprehensive car buying experience – be it in new or used cars. CarTrade and CarWale have been leaders in different segments and as a combined entity, we are uniquely placed to drive more value for the entire auto industry.”
About CarTrade
CarTrade.com is one of India’s leading auto websites and helps consumers to buy and sell new and used cars. Unique offerings on the site such as used car price information, condition check of cars and on road dealer prices help consumers to buy and sell with confidence. Millions of consumers visit CarTrade.com monthly to use these features. The site has new and used car dealers from all over the country who list their cars for sale.CarTrade has been founded by Vinay Sanghi and Investors in CarTrade include Warburg Pincus, JP Morgan, March Capital and Epiphany ventures.
About CarWale
CarWale is India’s largest automotive portal owned by Automotive Exchange Private Limited. CarWale has been recognised by IAMAI as the Best Auto Website in India, twice in a row (2011 and 2012), among several other awards from Red Herring, Business Week and PC World magazine for its contribution to the Indian automotive industry.