BluSmart raises $24 million via issue of equity rights to fund expansion

Electric vehicle ride-hailing service and charging infrastructure network operator BluSmart on Thursday said it raised $24 million (Rs 200 crore) through issue of equity rights to its existing investors for funding the company's expansion.

The latest funding round saw participation through over-subscription of equities by existing investors, founders and the leadership team, BluSmart said in a statement.

Currently, the platform operates over 5,500 electric vehicles in the domestic market. It owns and operates over 4,000 EV chargers across its 34 charging superhubs.

The platform said it aims to scale to a fleet size of around 8,000 EVs across Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru by next year.

"BluSmart has raised $24 million (Rs 200 crore) in a new equity round in December 2023," the company said in a statement.

"We will continue to expand our brand promise of zero ride denials, on time service and clean mobility to more geographies. The overwhelming support for the rights issue by our investors and belief exhibited by leading Development Financial Institutions (DFIs) shows exceptional confidence in our mission," said Anmol Singh Jaggi, Co-founder and CEO of BluSmart.

The company further said it has already secured long-term and sustainable EV asset financing of around $200 million (Rs 1,660 crore) backed by leading Development Financial Institutions (DFIs) in several tranches over a period of time.

The platform said it will use the fresh capital to set up large-scale EV charging superhubs.

Stating that BluSmart is building large EV charging superhubs at prime locations across Delhi-NCR and Bangalore, the company's charging business CEO Tushar Garg said, "EV charging infrastructure is the biggest bottleneck for large-scale EV adoption and is also the single largest opportunity.