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CAROUSELL has joined the unicorn club. The Singapore-based online classifieds startups on Wednesday raised US$100 million in fresh funds that valued it at US$1.1 billion, making it the city-state's latest tech startup to be worth more than a billion dollars. The fund-raise was led by South Korean private equity firm STIC, and bumped up Carousell's valuation slightly from the US$900 million recorded in its previous round last year. The city-state has seen more unicorns popping up on its shores this year, as it positions itself to capture South-east Asia's rising tech wave. Other newly-minted members in Singapore's growing unicorn club include IP analytics startup PatSnap, fintech company Nium and car marketplace Carro. Like Carousell, some of these companies have benefited from the surge of online activity and transactions on their platform amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Carousell, led by co-founder and chief executive Quek Siu Rui, has raised US$100 million in a funding round led by South Korean private equity firm STIC. It is now the city-state's latest unicorn. CAROUSELL has joined the unicorn club. The Singapore-based online classifieds startups on Wednesday raised US$100 million in fresh funds that valued it at US$1.1 billion, making it the city-state's latest tech startup to be worth more than a billion dollars. The fund-raise was led by South Korean private equity firm STIC, and bumped up Carousell's valuation slightly from the US$900 million recorded in its previous round last year. The city-state has seen more unicorns popping up on its shores this year, as it positions itself to capture South-east Asia's rising tech wave. Other newly-minted members in Singapore's growing unicorn club include IP analytics startup PatSnap, fintech company Nium and car marketplace Carro. Like Carousell, some of these companies have benefited from the surge of online activity and transactions on their platform amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Carousell is also said to be considering a public listing in the United States through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), Bloomberg reported in June. US SPAC or not, an exit could materialise for Carousell soon. Regulatory filings indicate that the Singapore-based company aims to provide its investors with an exit by 2024, at a valuation of at least US$1.13 billion. The company, which has a platform that allows users to buy and sell items ranging from clothes to houses, plans to spend the money on "deepening its investments" across more categories of pre-owned goods and markets, said co-founder and chief-executive Quek Siu Rui. It is also exploring acquisitions to scale up the business. Carousell has been busy. In April, it ventured into the highly competitive space of used-car sales, where it said it has plans to invest aggressively in. The company cited this vertical, as its largest one, contributing a third of revenue. Other more established used-car marketplaces include unicorns Carro and Carsome. Founded in 2012, Carousell has a presence in eight markets across South-east Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Its growing investor list includes names such as Telenor Group, Rakuten Ventures, Naver and Sequoia Capital India. The startup said it currently has "tens of millions" of monthly active users. https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/garage/carousell-raises-us100m-enters-unicorn-club-at-us11b-valuation

Now that the COE dropped by 6k for CAT B , my current car is left with 3 months , should i wait for 2 more months or buy a used car now? Will the drop in COE affect used car price significantly?

https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/Thai-used-car-market-heats-up-as-foreign-startups-jump-in?utm_campaign=GL_asia_daily&utm_medium=email&utm_source=NA_newsletter&utm_content=article_link&del_type=1&pub_date=20220317190000&seq_num=23&si=44594# Thai used-car market heats up as foreign startups jump in Online dealers hope to attract more consumers amid rising demand According to Deloitte, 21% of Thai consumers would like at least part of their next vehicle purchase to be done online. (Screenshot from CAR24, Carro, and Carsome webstite) APORNRATH PHOONPHONGPHIPHAT and DYLAN LOH, Nikkei staff writersMarch 17, 2022 12:20 JST BANGKOK/SINGAPORE -- Used-car sales in Thailand are set to grow again this year after a stellar 2021 due to a shortage of new cars, with online dealers such as India's Cars24 and Malaysia's Carsome entering the market to capitalize on fresh demand. On March 3, Carsome said it had partnered with PTT Oil and Retail Business -- a subsidiary of Thailand's energy conglomerate PTT -- in a move that analysts said would help the Malaysian company expand its used-car network and boost online vehicle purchases. "It is a 'blue ocean' market," said Pinyo Tanawatcharaporn, president of the Association of Used Cars, referring to an industry where there is little competition. The association is expecting Thailand's secondhand car market to grow 10-15% this year. The demand for cars has grown as commuters shy away from public transport to avoid crowds as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the pandemic's hit to the economy has weakened spending power, which has made buyers look for cheaper secondhand alternatives. Furthermore, the global chip shortage has constrained automakers' ability to produce new vehicles. Thailand's used car sales grew 7.5% to around 140 billion baht ($4.2 billion) in 2021, with further growth expected this year, according to Kasikorn Research Center. Pinyo said 1.2 million used cars were sold last year. Internet-based dealers have clocked on to Thailand's large consumer base as a means to fuel growth in Asia outside of their home markets. India's Cars24, for instance, launched its Southeast Asian foothold in the kingdom last November after its rivals -- Singapore's Carro and Malaysia's Carsome -- had already set up a Thai presence. All three startups are interested in generating car sales from their Thai digital platforms. According to Deloitte's "2022 Global Automotive Consumer Study," 21% of consumers in Thailand will prefer fully or partially virtual transactions to buy their next vehicle, while only 12% in the Philippines and Indonesia chose to do so. The report mentioned that consumers in Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam show a greater willingness to transact online. Startups like Cars24 hope to shift buyers online, particularly given the acceleration of digital penetration in Southeast Asia due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Like its competitors Carro and Carsome, Cars24 is doing this with hefty funding from backers. Last September, Cars24, which bills itself as India's largest online portal for used vehicles with an inventory of over 10,000 cars, announced the closing of a $450 million Series F equity round, which included investors like SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings. Carro CEO Aaron Tan. The online car sales platform received investment from SoftBank Vision Fund 2 in June 2021. (Photo by Takashi Nakano) In June, Carro announced that SoftBank Group had led its $360 million Series C funding round, which included Indonesia-based fund EV Growth, among other backers. The same year, Carsome announced the closing of its $170 million Series D2 round, bringing the company's valuation to $1.3 billion and prompting the startup to claim that it was Malaysia's largest technology unicorn. "I have been in the market for many years, but I've never seen such big investments from online used car platforms in the Thai market," said Pinyo from the Association of Used Cars. "That has forced us to switch to both online and offline outlets in order to survive, as we have realized that consumers' behaviors have changed." He said some consumers were worried about the quality of used cars bought online. To assuage those fears, the association has formed a partnership with Japanese vehicle inspection specialist Goo to verify the cars. "That has made it easier for Thai used-car sellers to adjust their businesses by moving online, and some of our members have already built their own webpages to meet changing consumer demands," Pinyo said.

My father got sweet talked into signing an agreement to sell his vehicle on the spot by a dealer located in Turf City. He is 62 years old and doesn't know how to read English. No other person was present when he signed. The person who referred the dealer is from a workshop where my father send his vehicle for repairs. And this same person kept telling my father this is the best price to sell liao. So shady imo. I checked with other dealers and not surprised to know that my father can get a better price elsewhere. I called the dealer and asked him nicely why didn't he explain to my father what he was going to sign. My father thought it was just a letter of offer but turns out it was the sales agreement. The dealer rudely replied say buy and sell car is like going to supermarket buy chicken. Very simple no need to explain. He even told me, if you all change your mind just compensate me because your father signed liao. You better do your homework before you call me. If not we go court lor. This dealer who I spoke to apparently is the boss. I know there is nothing much I can do when my father is too embarrassed to pursue this matter. No unkind comments please. Already feel damn down liao.

Hi all, new potential 2nd hand car buyer here. Looking to get a 2nd hand car in the near future. Browsed through sgcarmart and I have shortlisted a few models of car. 1. Audi A3 Sedan 1.4A TFSI Ambiente The cars i shortlisted are roughly the same in terms of age (3Y8M left) and price (50k) 2. Ssangyong Tivoli 1.6A I personally like the way it looks. However, I do not really see much of this model on the roads and was wondering if there is a particular reason so. Years left is decent (4Y8M) , price (56k) I have also looked at Kia Cerato as well as Hyundai Elantra. Would like to seek your thoughts on which would be a more worthwhile car and if so, what other cars would be an alternative? Really appreciate the help and all advice in advance!

Hi , a newbie to this forum , mind i ask wat kind of car is gd for one hu havent have any experience in owning a car before but needed to rn as im expecting a newborn child soon and on a tight budget due to the economic. If this would help , my budget is ard 5xk.

Hi all,does anyone here used secondhand tyres before?I heard tyre shop sell secondhand one,but dunno how much it cost.Care to share abt the cost and the safety aspect of it?

Dear all anyone got contacts for brokers to take in 2nd hand mobile phones? I dun want to travel, I want them to collect from me . thanks

Pics were taken by Amos and requested to be posted ... heh... Enjoy! Do give Secondhand a honk on the road when you see him Amos claimed he's some young chap... eh... why didn't you take a pic of him as well? Should've asked him to come for meetups [inline snap0017.jpg] [inline snap0018.jpg]

I am looking at this set of second hand speakers. Like to find out how long has this product been on the market and how good they are? However, one of the speaker's paper cone has been in contact with a little bit of water. Can still be used? Will it be worth buying for the price of S$60-S$80 one pair? I'm using Lazar Vibe 435 to power the front speakers only, no sub. Can advise on the combination? Thanks!