AutoFi Inc, a Fintech startup specialized in auto industry, announced that it raised $10 million in Series A funding.
AutoFi Inc, the San Francisco-based Fintech startup specialized in auto industry, announced that it raised $10 million in series A funding, bringing the total amount of equity funding to $17 million.
AutoFi’s product is a technology platform that allows car buyers purchase vehicles from a dealership’s website through a network of lenders presented at this platform too.
Thanks to AutoFi’s technology, a customer can choose a lender and apply for a loan online in order to buy a car. Financing decision will be given to customer in minutes that save time for car purchase to all participants of the deal.
“Consumers consistently rank the financing process as the worst part of the car-buying experience,” says AutoFi CEO Kevin Singerman. “We’re creating a much more transparent process that’s driven by the consumer.”
Existing AutoFi investors such as Crosslink Capital, Ford Motor Credit Co LLC and Lerer Hippeau Ventures took participation in funding round.
Nowadays, Ford Motor Credit Co, the lending arm of Ford Motor Co, uses the AutoFi’s software. That’s why the main reason for funding is to grow beyond Ford Motor Credit Co, to attract new users of the platform, and to enter international markets.
According to Kevin Singerman, the company will announce over next few months what national lenders will join its network.
AutoFi plans to work in Canada through a partnership with Tricor Automotive Group, which has over 200 dealerships. The results of this collaboration will be seen in the beginning of next year.
It should be added that Internet of Things platforms are widely used in auto industry by world leading car manufactures such as BMW, Jaguar, Ford and many others.
In the end of 2016, IBM and the BMW Group announced a partnership aimed at exploring the potential of IBM’s Watson cognitive computing . The companies plans to create more intuitive driver support systems for cars. IBM’s Watson is in the list of most popular Internet of Thing’s platforms.
In the beginning of 2017, Jaguar and Shell announced a new partnership to supply Jaguar models with a new cashless payment app allowing drivers to use their car’s touchscreen to pay for fuel. Now, instead of using a card at the pump or queuing in the forecourt shop, owners who install the Shell app can simply drive up to any pump at a Shell service station, select how much fuel they need at the vehicle’s touchscreen, and pay with PayPal or Apple Pay.
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