Finnish employee bike benefit pioneer Vapaus has completed a EUR 10 million Series A funding round. This equity-based funding will support international expansion, software development, platform automation, and the growth of its unique PreCycled concept for the second-hand market of bikes.
Vapaus has grown sixfold in two years, has become one of the fastest-growing companies in Finland and won gold in the European Startup Prize for Mobility 2023.
The investors behind the funding are Shift4Good as the lead investor, Tesi (officially Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) together with European Investment Bank’s co-investment facility EGF and SuperHero Capital.
“Sustainable mobility is at the heart of Vapaus. Cycling is an important part of future mobility and with electrification the role of bicycle is growing and diversifying globally. Our offering combines mobility, digital solutions and welfare development in an interesting way. We are happy to have a combination of international and Finnish investors on board to support our growth”, says Tero Era, CEO of Vapaus.
“Earlier this year we announced a 15 million loan arrangement which can be complemented by further optional extensions in the coming years. The equity-based financing announced today can potentially unlock a total of EUR 50 million funding for Vapaus”, continues Era.
Yann Marteil, the Co-Founder & Managing Partner of the lead investor Shift4Good, based in Paris and Singapore, emphasises the importance of cycling as a key solution for cleaner mobility and the significance of companies offering it as an employee benefit. He further highlights the ever growing business potential in Europe and globally.
“We are excited to confirm Shift4Good’s investment in Vapaus and look forward to supporting the growth of the company in the coming years. The quality of the team, the clear vision on impact and sustainability, and the ambition in terms of development were the main signals for Shift4Good to decide to financially accompany and support the company”, Yann Marteil concludes.
“Vapaus has demonstrated strong expertise in customer-driven operations, revenue growth and in developing a competitive and scalable service concept. We are pleased to support clean transition and employee cycling together with Vapaus,” says Heli Kerminen, Director on Tesi’s Venture Capital team.
Contacts
Vapaus
Tero Era, CEO, +358 50 541 6337, tero.era@vapaus.io
About Vapaus
Vapaus Bikes Finland Oy is at the forefront of sustainable mobility services and has been a pioneer in the Employee Benefit Bikes sector since late 2020. Vapaus boasts a mature and scalable business model, evident in its remarkable growth trajectory from €4.5 million in net revenues in 2021 to an impressive €30+ million in 2023. Vapaus has been ranked among Finland's fastest growing companies and won gold in the European Startup Prize for Mobility 2023.
Vapaus has successfully automated the entire process of employee benefit bikes through its technology platform covering payroll, invoicing, logistics, insurance, and financing. Vapaus is focusing on international expansion, to first penetrate the Swedish market, further enhance platform automation, and catalyse a transformative shift in the financing model, enhancing the overall employer experience. www.vapaus.io
About Shift4Good
Shift4Good is an impact venture capital fund focused on the decarbonization of the transportation sector. It aims to invest in the transport for goods and people, which alone accounts for around 20% of global CO2 emissions. Backed by top-notch institutional financial investors, but also major mobility players, Shift4Good has built a unique model to identify and support the best entrepreneurs, those capable of developing and deploying the radical innovations required by the climate emergency. Shift4Good has offices in Paris and Singapore. www.shift4good.com
About Tesi
Tesi (officially Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) is a state-owned, market-driven investment company that invests in venture capital and private equity funds and directly in Finnish startups and growth companies.
www.tesi.fi
About Superhero Capital
Superhero Capital is to founders what Alfred is to Batman – the help from behind the scenes. The fund has four full-time ‘Alfreds’ helping in building scalable tech, metrics and insight, business model and storytelling. The team has collectively founded, worked at and invested in over 60 startups in various fields including ecommerce, fintech, healthtech, and industrial tech. www.superherocapital.com
Links:
Zag Daily: Vapaus secures €15 million after sixfold growth in two years
Research study: Employee benefit bike users cycle over five times more than the average Finn
Podcast: The stories behind Europe's most promising clean mobility startups
Vapaus won gold in the European Startup Prize for Mobility 2023