The e-commerce giant has eBay announced plans to acquire CaramelA startup that helps car sellers and buyers complete the final steps of the transaction — including verification, financing, paperwork, ownership transfer, insurance and more.
Founded in Los Angeles in 2021, Caramel formally launched Last year it had some $19 million in funding behind it, including backers FJ LabsHearst Ventures, Zeev Ventures and Primera Capital.
Caramel may be used to complete sales initiated by independent dealerships or marketplaces, Including eBay. At the time of check out, Caramel is provided as an option to verify the identity of individuals, handle title transfer and registration and transfer funds. Buyers are also able to choose financing options and arrange delivery of the vehicle.
‘faithful’
As eBay has grown over the years, it has had to evolve to stay competitive — last year, for example, the company Removed seller’s fees in the UK To tackle the new wave of marketplace startups. In the automotive sector, in particular, eBay has acquired several startups, including Advertising and marketing tech company Cargigias well UK classifieds site Motors.co.uk.
Last month, eBay’s old nemesis Amazon entered the online car sales business Amazon Auto Launch In partnership with Hyundai. While it’s all about finding and buying new vehicles directly from dealerships, it’s not entirely inconceivable that Amazon could expand its scope to cover used vehicles in the future.
Ultimately, eBay wants to ensure it remains the go-to channel for safe, speedy used car sales, at a time when consumers have more options than ever.
While eBay already offers some Guidance and services to facilitate online car sales, viz Escrow to hold fundsBringing Caramel Gives in-house will enable it to speed up the process by taking care of much of the stressful post-sale administration.
Chris PrilleBay Motors’ general manager, says the acquisition is about “building trust” in the vehicle buying process, helping buyers and sellers avoid Scams.
“Buying a car is a big moment – Carmel’s platform brings it all into one simple, seamless process: title and identity verification, insurance, financing – even shipping the car to the buyer after purchase,” Chris Prill said in a statement. “With the combined forces of Caramel and eBay, both buyers and sellers will be able to complete vehicle transactions on eBay with greater peace of mind and Caramel will further establish itself on numerous platforms.”
Neither company disclosed the acquisition price, but eBay said it expects the deal to close in Q1, 2025.
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