General Catalyst Co-Leads Cazoo’s £240 Million Equity Funding Round

London – October 6, 2020 – Cooley advised General Catalyst Venture Partners as a lead investor in Cazoo’s £240 million equity funding round, which brings the UK-based used car sales platform’s value to more than £2 billion – more than double its valuation at its previous funding round earlier this year, which made it the UK’s fastest startup to reach a valuation of more than £1 billion. Cooley partner Aaron Archer led the team advising General Catalyst. 

The round also included participation from D1 Capital Partners, funds managed by Fidelity and Blackrock and other new and existing investors. Cazoo will use the new capital to grow its team, brand and infrastructure and to continue making car buying better for all UK consumers. 

Founded by Alex Chesterman, Cazoo is pioneering the shift to online car buying in the UK and is selling and delivering thousands of cars a month to customers all around the country. It has already achieved revenues of more than £100 million since its launch less than a year ago. 

“I have known Alex for seventeen years, since our days building LoveFilm,” Adam Valkin, managing director of General Catalyst, said in a news release. “He has made a career out of identifying large consumer markets where technology can drive change and then leading that transformation by focusing on the customer and delivering value, convenience and a trusted service. With Cazoo, Alex is taking his proven playbook to perhaps his largest opportunity yet for the benefit of used car buyers across the UK.”

Founded in 2000, General Catalyst is a venture capital firm that makes early stage and transformational investments. The firm backs exceptional entrepreneurs who are building innovative technology companies and market-leading businesses. General Catalyst has offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Palo Alto, California and New York City.

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