The proposed acquisition of the U.K. start bus platform is not well-received. In April, we wrote about how a possible $100 million acquisition was on the cards, and both companies confirmed it was not the price.
SWVL, an Egyptian-born startup that provides shared transportation services, had previously gone public via a SPAC, and had agreed to acquire Zeelo, as well as Viapool and Shotl.
The stock was trading at $9 to $10 a share. It's currently trading at $1 a share. The difference...
The acquisition is no longer being pursued due to the overall market conditions and the decline in tech stocks.
The April 28 acquisition was supposed to be completed on May 24, but due to financial market volatility, the deal was scrapped.
In an SEC filing, the company said it agreed to end their previously announced transaction. The $5 million convertible promissory note will be kept by the latter.
The move seems to be a good one for the company, which claims to be seeing continued growth in its business in the U.K., South Africa and the U.S., providing private rides for commuters and students.
A total of $18.6 million has been raised by the company from investors.
In an interview with co- founder and CEO Sam Ryan, I asked if the terminated acquisition was a disaster for the company.
He doesn't think it's been a disaster. The market conditions are different. The business is growing fast and we are still in a good place. We are protected from what is happening in the public markets.
Due to the collapse in tech markets, both companies mutually decided to end the transaction.
He said that they are in a good place. We are growing 1.5 times this year in the U.K. We are doing 150,000 rides a month. There is a huge opportunity in the U.S. market. Being shielded from the public markets isn't bad. It is a real roller coaster with lots of up and downs. Everyone is very excited about what the future holds.
He said that the world has changed quickly in the last few months and that sentiment around public early-stage technology companies has changed dramatically. I don't think any of us could have predicted what was going to happen over the last few months.
The news that it has cut a deal with electric fleet and network infrastructure provider, Zenobe, to enable the former to run rides on electric vehicles, with a subsequent position contribution to its net-zero goals, is coming out as well. The journeys of Zelo are carbon neutral through a partnership with Climate partner.
25% of the U.K.'s bus market share is serviced by Zenobe, which provides charging infrastructure, battery replacement, large scale battery storage and refurbished second-life batteries. Electric buses are being run on some routes by the company.
James Basden, co-founder of Zenobe, said: "Access is the key roadblock to transitioning to electrification and that is why we have developed software, infrastructure and a financing model together with our partners."
Consumers can use consumer apps to pick up workers or students from where they are. The company was founded in 2016 by Sam Ryan, Barney Williams and Daniel Ruiz. It has raised over 30 million dollars from a number of people. The co-founders of JumpIn sold their app to another company.
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