Carousell Group, a Singapore-based classifieds startup with operations in nine countries throughout Asia and Canada, revealed yesterday that it had secured US$100 million (RM415 million) to accelerate expansion.

The media announcement made no mention of a listing. However, media sources from June have connected it to a prospective US listing via SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company).

Quek Siu Rui, co-founder, and CEO of Carousell, mentioned that the pandemic has proven its mission to inspire the world to start selling, and buying secondhand is more relevant than ever.

People are utilizing our platforms to make it more feasible for one another, whether via shared interests, making ends meet, affording what they require, or just because it is more sustainable.

They believed that the increased adoption of digital experiences is an opportunity for them to double down on their recommerce efforts, focusing on convenience and trust to unleash step-change growth in their community.

The investment by STIC validates their goal and strategic direction.  Also, they envision increasing their investments in recommerce across new categories and markets, and they will continue to look for opportunistic acquisitions to help them scale up.

Jason Cho, Managing Director of STIC Investments, stated they have been keeping an eye on Carousell and are thrilled to be partnering with a significant share in its development narrative.

Carousell continues to see tremendous user growth as it transforms the recommerce industry by introducing new features to build trusted marketplaces and improve the overall user experience.

The team and he are convinced that Carousell will be at the heart of the secondhand economy in this region at a time when a growing number of socioeconomic and environmentally concerned customers are turning toward a circular economy.

Besides that, Cho will join the Carousell Board as part of the financing round.

Since its founding in 2012, the Group has served tens of millions of consumers in eight Southeast Asian and Taiwan markets through the brands Carousell, Mudah.my (in Malaysia), Cho Tot (Vietnam), and OneKyat (Myanmar).

The last three locations were formerly held by Telenor Group, a Norwegian telecom, before the two companies merged in late 2019.