NordenBladet – Forus International, a company owned by Estonian businessman Urmas Sõurumaa, has acquired the Autolevi car-sharing platform, founded by Tauri Kärson, Simo Sulev, and Robert Sarv in 2013. The purchase price has not been disclosed, and the transaction is subject to approval from the Competition Authority.
Autolevi’s sales revenue last year was €109,300, and it employed two people in the last quarter. Based on the last transaction price, the company’s value was €290,000. Funderbeam investors will be paid €0.56 per unit if the deal is approved. Autolevi’s founder and CEO, Tauri Kärson, said the last price of Autolevi’s instrument on Funderbeam was €0.46, which implies a 21% yield compared to the last market price.
Autolevi has 45,000 users in Estonia, Latvia, and Finland and a selection of over 2,200 vehicles, according to its website. In 2022, users rented out their cars worth more than half a million euros through the platform, and this number is increasing steadily. With the help of Autolevi, car owners can earn more than €1,000 of additional income per month by renting out their vehicles, as cars typically sit idle for 90% of the time while owners must pay for leasing and insurance in full each year.
The car rental market in Estonia is underserved, despite having over 600,000 private cars and 630,000 driver’s license holders. By reducing the number of private cars on the streets, shared car services such as Autolevi can help alleviate issues like pollution, traffic congestion, and parking problems. Autolevi wants to make its service available through an app, in addition to its current web-based platform, with the help of Forus International. In 2017, Autolevi was among the top 20 startup companies in Estonia, and its development has been supported by early angel investors and more than 200 Funderbeam supporters.
Featured image: Urmas Sõõrumaa (NordenBladet)
Source: NordenBladet.ee