Stellantis has agreed to buy BMW and Mercedes-Share Benz's Now car-sharing business as the two German companies focus on the software side of their mobility cooperation.
Stellantis, which was formed last year through the merging of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot maker PSA, aims to establish itself as a global leader in car-sharing, and this move announced on Tuesday will help it do so.
The agreement underscores several tactics taken by automakers in their efforts to diversify their revenue streams beyond vehicle sales, most notably in the rapidly growing field of mobility services.
Stellantis' mobility section, Free2move, is led by Brigitte Courtehoux, who said the deal was part of the company's ambition to increase net revenues to 700 million euros ($735 million) in 2025 and 2.8 billion euros in 2030.
"We will really accelerate in terms of revenues," she said.
According to Stellantis, the agreement will allow Free2move to add 14 major European cities and 10,000 vehicles to its current 2,500-strong car sharing fleet, bringing the total number of users to over 3.4 million.
"We're at break even since mid-2020, we know how to be profitable in this business," Courtehoux said.
"Step by step, we'll have more and more Stellantis cars in it," she said, adding that the Free2Move fleet would not become entirely Stellantis.
The transaction's financial specifics were not released. It is estimated to be valued around 100 million euros, according to the Italian newspaper La Repubblica.
Stellantis' Milan-listed shares were up 2.1 per cent by 0730 GMT.
In 2019, Share Now exited the North American market due to high maintenance expenses and the "volatile status of the global mobility ecosystem," as the firms put it.
When BMW CEO Oliver Zipse mentioned the possibility of bringing in new partners or a partial sale in late 2020, it fueled speculation of a reorganisation of the mobility services alliance with Mercedes-Benz.
By selling the division, BMW and Mercedes-Benz will be able to focus on the two remaining aspects of their mobility partnership: Free Now, an app that allows users to book cars, taxis, e-scooters, and e-bikes, and Charge Now, an app that allows users to schedule charging infrastructure.
"The new orientation enables us to scale our activities faster and thus to achieve further profitable growth in the shortest possible time," said Rainer Feurer, BMW's Head of Corporate Investments
(Source:www.bloombergquint.com)
Stellantis, which was formed last year through the merging of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot maker PSA, aims to establish itself as a global leader in car-sharing, and this move announced on Tuesday will help it do so.
The agreement underscores several tactics taken by automakers in their efforts to diversify their revenue streams beyond vehicle sales, most notably in the rapidly growing field of mobility services.
Stellantis' mobility section, Free2move, is led by Brigitte Courtehoux, who said the deal was part of the company's ambition to increase net revenues to 700 million euros ($735 million) in 2025 and 2.8 billion euros in 2030.
"We will really accelerate in terms of revenues," she said.
According to Stellantis, the agreement will allow Free2move to add 14 major European cities and 10,000 vehicles to its current 2,500-strong car sharing fleet, bringing the total number of users to over 3.4 million.
"We're at break even since mid-2020, we know how to be profitable in this business," Courtehoux said.
"Step by step, we'll have more and more Stellantis cars in it," she said, adding that the Free2Move fleet would not become entirely Stellantis.
The transaction's financial specifics were not released. It is estimated to be valued around 100 million euros, according to the Italian newspaper La Repubblica.
Stellantis' Milan-listed shares were up 2.1 per cent by 0730 GMT.
In 2019, Share Now exited the North American market due to high maintenance expenses and the "volatile status of the global mobility ecosystem," as the firms put it.
When BMW CEO Oliver Zipse mentioned the possibility of bringing in new partners or a partial sale in late 2020, it fueled speculation of a reorganisation of the mobility services alliance with Mercedes-Benz.
By selling the division, BMW and Mercedes-Benz will be able to focus on the two remaining aspects of their mobility partnership: Free Now, an app that allows users to book cars, taxis, e-scooters, and e-bikes, and Charge Now, an app that allows users to schedule charging infrastructure.
"The new orientation enables us to scale our activities faster and thus to achieve further profitable growth in the shortest possible time," said Rainer Feurer, BMW's Head of Corporate Investments
(Source:www.bloombergquint.com)
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