Luminor has provided 950k EUR financing to Carguru

Luminor has given financial leasing of 950k EUR to Carguru, the provider of carsharing services, to increase their car fleet. Additional vehicles will allow making the service more accessible and will give users new mobility solutions and sustainable cars.

Carguru was founded by Vladimir Reskajs in 2016 with just 12 cars. Four years ago, only a few people knew about it, primarily those who tried this service overseas. Vladimir assumes that now at least 85% of Riga’s citizens have heard about it, and they can even name the companies that offer this service. 

“We managed to convince citizens that it is normal to take a car on the street with the help of the app. There are no hidden risks, and they should not be afraid of receiving a receipt for some mysterious damages. It was really a big challenge,” says Vladimir Reskajs.

The cooperation of Luminor and Carguru has started in 2017. This year Carguru car fleet will be increased by 46 hybrid engine cars. This will facilitate more sustainable and affordable mobility within the city and outside of it.

Carguru has already begun to integrate electric vehicles into its car fleet. 

“Technologically, we are fully prepared for the introduction of electric cars to our car fleet, but we try not to exaggerate the number of such cars. Sooner or later, the European Commission will force Latvia to step towards the development of electric vehicle support, and our government will have to stimulate the purchase of electric cars. Business logic states that it would not be right to pressure a larger electric car fleet on Latvia before that happens. While we are waiting, we will continue to work with hybrid vehicles and will slowly increase the number of electric cars in our car fleet,” Vladimir Reskajs stated to Labs of Latvia before.

In the world, this industry is developing. There is growth within the number of users, as well as the number of cars. Vladimir Reskajs says that according to various predictions, this year, the number of carsharing cars worldwide will reach 610 thousand.

Moreover, new players enter the market, for example, new car sharing companies and big car manufacturers, who view this business model as a new channel to market their products. At the same time, peoples’ desire to buy their own cars is decreasing, if there is a possibility to use a car only when it is needed without having to commit.

“In carsharing, there are many small and niche companies that work with specific products and offer slightly different services. After some time, when self-driving cars become a reality, car sharing and taxi services will merge into one. I think this is not very far in the future,” Vladimir says.

Source: labsoflatvia.com