New York/Munich (July 18, 2019) – FlixMobility GmbH, the parent company of global mobility platforms FlixBus and FlixTrain, has announced the completion of its Series F funding round co-led by TCV and Permira, two of the largest growth equity firms backing private and public technology companies. Longtime investor HV Holtzbrinck Ventures also participated in the round through a joint co-investment with European Investment Bank, providing local expertise and expert knowledge to scale the business further. The newest FlixMobility investors join existing shareholders including General Atlantic, a leading global growth equity firm, and Silver Lake, a global leader in technology investing, who have helped the company rapidly grow from start-up to global mobility provider.
The equity raised will be used for global expansion as well as the launch of new FlixMobility products. FlixBus is targeting market leadership in the United States and will launch into new global markets in South America and Asia in 2020. For the FlixTrain brand, the investment will help expansions into new EU countries following the liberalization of the European rail market in 2020 in addition to growing the product within the German market where FlixTrain already operates multiple cross-country routes. Furthermore, the investment will be used to launch FlixCar, a ride sharing platform that will complement the existing FlixBus and FlixTrain networks.
“What began in 2013 as a German startup has become a powerful mobility platform that continues to change the way millions of people travel across Europe and the United States,” said Jochen Engert, CEO and founder of FlixMobility. “Through our strategic partnership with TCV and Permira, which have decades of experience and a portfolio of world-leading technology companies, we will accelerate our growth to offer smart and green travel to more people across the world via the FlixBus, FlixTrain and soon FlixCar brands, while strengthening our position in existing markets.”
“We could not be more excited to partner with Jochen, André, Daniel and the entire FlixMobility team,” said John Doran, General Partner at TCV. “We have been following their success for a number of years, and greatly admire what they have been able to achieve over this time. TCV’s strategy is to back companies led by visionary founders and offering superb value propositions to its customers and partners – we believe FlixMobility does exactly that.”
“We are very excited to join the ride with FlixMobility and its founders in the future. They have written an impressive success story and transformed the company into a leading global mobility platform for mid- and long-distance travel. With our proven expertise in the technology sector, we look forward to supporting FlixMobility’s strong management team in the next phase of the growth strategy focusing on further internationalization, acquisitions and the expansion of the train offering”, said Stefan Dziarski, Partner at Permira. “With the investment in FlixMobility, the Permira funds underline their position as one of the largest technology investors in Europe. FlixMobility – with its high growth rates and global footprint – is a perfect fit for the new Permira Growth Opportunities Fund, focusing on larger minority investments in our core areas of expertise.”
Both John Doran, General Partner at TCV, and Stefan Dziarski, Partner at Permira, will join FlixMobility’s Board of Directors.
