Planet42 offers a rent-to-buy car subscription that lets individuals who cannot get traditional bank credit access personal vehicles through partnerships with dealerships across South Africa. The company evaluates applications using credit bureau, affordability and alternative data with an automated scoring algorithm, validates documents, then purchases vehicles from dealers and rents them to customers. Vehicles are secured with mechanical and comprehensive insurance plus asset-tracking technology. Planet42 opened a physical car marketplace at Menlyn Park Shopping Centre in Pretoria to complement its online platform; nearly 2,000 South Africans have used that marketplace delivery service since launch. The business has delivered more than 20,000 vehicles to customers to date. Financially, Planet42 has raised significant capital to scale and recently secured ZAR300 million (US $15.8 million) in combined debt and equity from Standard Bank. Planet42 is an Estonia-founded, South Africa-based mobility startup offering rent-to-buy car subscriptions that purchases vehicles from dealer partners and rents them to customers assessed by proprietary scoring algorithms. The platform lets customers discover a budget, choose new or pre-owned cars from Planet42’s dealer network, then Planet42 buys the car and rents it on a subscription basis. The company has bought more than 12,000 cars for customers across South Africa and Mexico, including over 5,000 vehicles in South Africa in the last 12 months and 250 delivered in Mexico. Its dealer network has grown from about 700 to 1,000 dealerships, and Planet42 says 89% of its customers would otherwise have had no access to a personal vehicle; dealers report an average 26% increase in sales after partnering. Planet42 has expanded into Mexico as part of a strategy to address transport inequality and aims to scale globally to provide a million cars. The startup became carbon-neutral certified in 2021 and has raised capital to accelerate its growth. Planet42 buys second-hand cars from dealerships and rents them to private customers on a subscription basis, targeting people who lack access to traditional vehicle finance. The company uses proprietary scoring algorithms to underwrite customers in underbanked segments and says 89% of its customers would not have had other means to access a personal vehicle. Planet42 has a network of over 700 dealerships and has listed more than 7,000 cars to customers, growing 25% month-on-month in 2021. It has pursued carbon-neutral initiatives, financing a wind farm project in South Africa with money from carbon offset credits. The company has expanded beyond South Africa by buying its first cars for clients in Mexico, has set up an office there with two staff, and plans further expansion into larger markets. Planet42 aims to have bought over 1 million cars for customers across its markets by 2025. Planet42 provides car subscriptions by purchasing second-hand vehicles from partner dealerships and renting them to customers who are frequently denied traditional bank credit. The company uses a proprietary scoring algorithm to assess individual risk automatically and secures assets with tracking technology plus comprehensive mechanical insurance. Planet42 owns its fleet and generates predictable revenues from subscriptions, which the company says enables sizable debt financing and lower relative costs. Its primary market is South Africa, where it has bought and delivered over 2,000 cars and signed up more than 300 dealerships. The company reports that over 90% of its clientele are those banks deem 'blacklisted.' Planet42 aims to purchase 100,000 cars by 2024, is considering expansion into other emerging markets, and plans to raise a Series A in 2021. Planet42 partners with dealerships across South Africa to buy vehicles and rent them to largely underbanked customers using an automated scoring algorithm that evaluates credit bureau, affordability and alternative data. The company validates applicants with documents such as IDs, payslips and bank statements before purchase and rents the asset to the customer. Vehicles are secured with tracking technology and comprehensive mechanical insurance. Planet42 launched as CarGet in 2017 and is led by co‑founders and CEO Eerik Oja and CFO Marten Orgna. To date nearly 2,000 vehicles have been delivered and the startup is targeting 100,000 cars in South Africa by 2024. The company raised seed funding and will use the proceeds to expand its portfolio of vehicles.

Total raised

$149M

Funding rounds

9

Latest round

Debt Financing

Latest activity

Mar 2024