RelayRides Raises $25 Million in Series B Funding Led by Canaan Partners

SAN FRANCISCO, June 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The world's largest peer-to-peer car rental marketplace, RelayRides, announced today that it has raised $25 million in Series B funding, bringing total funds raised to $44 million. Lead investor Canaan Partners joins existing investors August Capital, Google Ventures and Shasta Ventures, with Canaan Partners General Partner Deepak Kamra joining the Board of Directors. The new funding will be used to accelerate customer acquisition, enhance existing products and expand into new geographies and services. 

"We love Deepak's stellar track record as an operator and as an investor," said RelayRides CEO, Andre Haddad. "He brings a wealth of experience to our board, having supported a legion of disruptive technology companies over the past two decades, including more than 10 IPOs. Most importantly, we decided Deepak was the best fit for RelayRides given his passion and enthusiasm for the company's mission and long-term potential. He is uniquely positioned to help RelayRides enter its next phase of development."

"With an installed base of more than 1 billion cars around the world, most of them remaining idle the vast majority of the time, we believe RelayRides is pursuing an enormous opportunity," said Deepak Kamra. "We believe RelayRides has nailed the model for peer-to-peer car sharing and is uniquely positioned to have a huge impact on transportation. I look forward to supporting Andre and the RelayRides team in accomplishing their mission."

To celebrate this company milestone and Independence Day, RelayRides is giving all current and new members $20 off their next rental. Members can claim their credit by entering the promo code USA2014 on their RelayRides account page. Credit may be redeemed until end of day (midnight PDT) Friday, July 4^th.

Since launching nationwide in March 2012, RelayRides has grown rental bookings by 14x by enabling economic opportunities for car owners and by providing renters with more choice, better value and increased convenience. RelayRides has also significantly improved the economics of the business by fundamentally shifting its model away from hourly rentals on hardware-enabled cars to focus on longer duration rentals (daily, weekly, and monthly) where owners and renters meet in person to exchange keys. Thanks to its amazing community of owners and renters, RelayRides delivers an experience that has earned it an industry-leading Net Promoter Score (NPS).

A major catalyst for RelayRides' accelerated growth is the company's increasing dedication to serving travelers and expanding at airports. In just one year, RelayRides has expanded its coverage to over 300 airports in the United States, providing 92% of air travelers with access to the benefits of peer-to-peer car rentals. Since launching airports a year ago, RelayRides' airport business has achieved a 34% monthly growth rate.   

Since 2012, owners have had their average transaction values grow by 5x, and renters have benefited from prices an average of 40 percent lower than traditional rental car companies while enjoying access to over 800 unique makes and models of vehicles.

About RelayRides

RelayRides is the world's largest peer-to-peer car rental marketplace. With vehicles in over 2,300 cities nationally, RelayRides efficiently connects people who need a car with owners whose vehicles would otherwise go unused. It backs each reservation with a $1 million insurance policy. RelayRides has raised $44 million in venture capital funding from investors including Canaan Partners, Google Ventures, August Capital and Shasta Ventures. For more information, visit www.RelayRides.com

SOURCE RelayRides