Olgiate Comasco-based Fleequid, the primary on-line market constructed for getting and promoting used buses, has raised €3 million in Seed funding to broaden throughout Europe, develop its group, and enhance its public sale platform.
The spherical was led by Amsterdam-based DFF Ventures, with participation from Silence VC, FJ Labs and angel investor Jack Greco (Co-founder of ACV Auctions). This marks DFF’s second funding in Italy and the primary for Silence and FJ.
“We’ve been on this world for 13 years,” mentioned Co-founder Filippo Battaglia. “We all know the gamers, we all know the ache factors, and we all know how a lot worth is misplaced within the present system. We constructed Fleequid to alter that. We used to say no to 90% of buses at Basco as a result of we didn’t have a scalable method to resell them. Now, we will say sure to all of them.”
Based in 2024 by brothers Filippo and Federico Battaglia, Fleequid was created to handle the issues of these working within the business car marketplace for passenger transportation and are in search of simplicity, pace, and transparency.
As per figures offered by Fleequid, the bus resale market is surprisingly massive, over 100,000 buses change fingers yearly in Europe alone. But, in line with the corporate, the method stays gradual, fragmented and offline.
Buses sometimes begin in Northern Europe transferring south and altering homeowners three to 4 occasions throughout their lifespan. Nations like Italy, Poland, Germany and Spain, with robust tourism sectors and huge rural areas, rely closely on these autos. However regardless of the market’s measurement, the method of shopping for and promoting buses remains to be caught prior to now – in line with Fleequid.
Most homeowners don’t know the way to promote or who to promote to. As a substitute, they go straight to brokers: middlemen who function in an opaque system filled with hidden mark-ups. After greater than a decade working of their household’s bus buying and selling firm Basco, the 2 founding brothers noticed a possibility to deliver pace and belief to an business that wanted each.
Fleequid replaces backroom offers and lengthy e-mail chains with a single platform the place sellers can listing their autos and patrons can compete in open on-line auctions. Each bus comes with a full file: pictures, movies, situation reviews, technical inspection, all verified by Fleequid’s group.
As soon as a deal is made, Fleequid takes care of the whole transaction, from cost to possession switch and transport.
In its first months, Fleequid bought tons of of buses. Consumers positioned bids from Ghana, Romania and Iraq to core EU markets reminiscent of Italy, Poland and Bulgaria.
“We search for sharp founders tackling massive issues in under-digitised markets,” mentioned Maarten Engelen, Associate at DFF. “The Battaglia brothers are insiders who’ve determined to disrupt their very own business, they usually’ve accomplished it with the type of execution and grit we like to again. Fleequid isn’t just a greater method to commerce buses. It’s the beginning of a brand new working system for the whole sector.”
With this new spherical of funding, Fleequid plans to speed up its rollout throughout Europe, additional develop its know-how, so corporations can commerce buses with the pace of clicking ‘purchase now.’
