Narayan AmmachchiMexican mass transit mobility startup Urbvan has been acquired by Egyptian software-as-a-service (SaaS) and technology-as-a-service (TaaS) vendor SWVL Holdings for US$82 million.
This is SWVL’s third acquisition in Latin America after it bought Chile-based Viapool and Brazil’s Saas vendor Shotl last year.
Founded in 2016, Urbvan operates in 18 cities across Mexico and claims to have experienced a 138% jump in annual revenue since 2017.
“This transaction positions Urbvan to take advantage of SWVL’s global offerings to scale the platform both within the region and beyond,” said Renato Picard, co-founder of the Mexican startup.
The founders of Urbvan, Renato Picard and João Matos Albino, will continue to oversee its operations even after the completion of the transaction. The Mexican company will be listed on the stock market soon after the transaction’s closing.
The startup has raised capital from some of the region’s well-known venture funds, including Kaszek, Angel Ventures, DILA Capital, Mountain Nazca, Capria and Liil Ventures.
“Urbvan was founded on the same principals as SWVL: to address the inefficiencies found in traditional mass transit,” said Mostafa Kandil, SWVL’s Founder and CEO.
The acquisition expands SWVL’s operations to 135 cities in 20 countries around the globe.
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