May 2, 2019
Rappi, a Bogota, Columbia-based on-demand delivery startup, has agreed to raise a record $1 billion in funding from SoftBank Group Corp. and SoftBank Vision Fund, according to a company release. Rappi will use to funding to expand its delivery service throughout the region and develop additional products.
The SoftBank Group and the SoftBank Vision Fund will invest up to $500 million each. The SoftBank Group investment will be transferred to the SoftBank Innovation Fund, which launched in March.
Rappi, which launched in 2015, provides services in a variety of sectors, including restaurant, grocery, drugstore medication and digital payment services. The company, which also offers a mobile wallet called RappiPay, operates in Brazil, Columbia, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Peru.
"Rappi's founders have a bold vision to create the premier multi-service super-app for Latin America, improving the lives of millions in the region," said Marcelo Claure, COO of SoftBank Group, CEO of SoftBank International and CEO of Softbank Innovation Fund.
"SoftBank's vision of accelerating the technology revolution deeply resonated with our mission of improving how people live through digital payments and a super app for everything consumers need," Rappi co-founder and President Sebastian Meijia said in the announcement. "We will continue to focus on building innovations for couriers, restaurants, retailers and startups that translate into new sources of growth."
Jeffrey Housenbold, managing partner of Softbank Investment Advisors, will join the Rappi board of directors. Existing investors in the firm include DST Global, Delivery Hero, Sequoia Capital, Andreeson Horowitz and Y Combinator.
Topics: Mobile Apps, Mobile/Digital Wallet, Region: Americas
Companies: Softbank Vision Group
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