Kakao Mobility, a South Korea-based mobility-as-a-service platform, has received $200 million in funding.
The investment has come from the Carlyle Group via its Carlyle Asia Partners V fund.
Kakao Mobility, which is part of Kakao Corporation, offers taxi-hailing, electric bike hire and parking and navigation services from its app platform.
A statement from Carlyle says the Korean company is also developing autonomous driving technology.
It adds that Kakao Mobility will take advantage of Carlyle’s “industry knowledge and global network to expand into new businesses” as well as invest in technology.
Ryu Gung-seon, CEO of Kakao Mobility, says: “Our partnership with Carlyle will enable us to expedite our growth strategy for our smart mobility platform, which aims to create a more comfortable and convenient mobility experience for users.”
John Kim, managing director of the Carlyle Asia advisory team, says: “Under the leadership of a seasoned management team, Kakao Mobility has grown into South Korea’s largest MaaS platform with strong data analytics and technology capabilities.”
Carlyle has invested in travel companies in the past including Viator prior to its acquisition by Tripadvisor.
The company announced investment in American Express Global Business Travel in December 2019 but the deal fell through in May 2020.
According to reports, Carlyle Group and Certares, which led the acquisition of 50% of American Express GBT back in 2014, have now privately settled suits relating to the failed deal.