London-based boat rental platform Borrow A Boat has acquired Barqo, a
peer-to-peer boating marketplace based in Amsterdam.
Terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed.
Launched in 2017, Borrow A Boat offers both peer-to-peer
listings and boat rental from traditional charter companies.
In November the company completed its third
crowdfunding campaign, raising £1.1 million and bringing its total funding
to date to more than £4.8 million.
In the last year Borrow A Boat has launched in the United
States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and it acquired specialist charter
brokerage Helm.
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Borrow A Boat says the addition of Barqo adds more than
5,000 additional boats to its marketplace, bringing the total to more than
40,000 in 65 countries, ranging from sailboats to catamarans, riverboats and
superyachts.
“After a successful 2021, including securing over
£1 million in investment via crowdfunding, we’re thrilled to have kicked off
the year with such a firm move into the European market,” says Matt
Ovenden, founder and CEO at Borrow A Boat.
“Barqo was founded with the same mission as Borrow A
Boat - a team of boating enthusiasts keen to share the joy of boating by making
it more accessible, affordable, flexible and inclusive for all, and so we’re
looking forward to opening up boating to even more people worldwide.”
Borrow A Boat says it is considering an IPO later this year.