SNCF buys VC-backed OuiCar for €28m

Although details surrounding the stake to be held by SNCF remain confidential, press reports place it at around the 75% mark.

Under SNCF's tenure, OuiCar's current 20,000-strong vehicle base is expected to grow to 100,000 cars by 2018. The investment is part of SNCF's activity in the sustainable mobility sector.

Prior to the acquisition, the public railway company was an indirect shareholder in OuiCar via VC firm Ecomobilité Ventures, which SNCF helped launch alongside corporates Orange, Total, Air Liquide and Michelin in 2008.

This is the third deal involving a French car-sharing company in recent months. In April, peer-to-peer car sharing service Drivy secured €16m from BPI's Ecotechnologie Fund, Via-ID, Index Ventures and Alven Capital to acquire competitor Buzzcar.

That same month, Paris-based BlaBlaCar was supported by shareholder Index Ventures as it bolted on Earlybird's Carpooling and Autohop. The add-ons came one year after BlaBlaCar picked up Ukraine-based Podorozhniki and merged operations with the business.

Previous funding
Jaina Capital has been a shareholder in OuiCar since it led an early-stage round for the business, then branded Zilok Auto, in June 2007. The capital injection was followed by a €1.5m second round by Ecomobilité Ventures in October 2012, according to unquote" data.

In February 2014, Jaina and Ecomobilité came back for a third round as they deployed a combined €3m into OuiCar. At the time, it was revealed the car rental service had received €5m in funding since inception.

Company
Founded as Zilok Auto in 2007, OuiCar is an online platform that offers peer-to-peer car rental services. Headquartered in Paris, the business claims to operate a network of 20,000 vehicles. The company is believed to have most recently generated €2m in sales.

People
Guillaume Pepy is chairperson at SNCF and CEO of SNCF Mobilités, while Barbara Dalibard is managing director of SNCF Voyageurs.

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