DB Schenker, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group, TransLink Capital, and existing shareholders Lukasz Gadowski and btov join to extend Series C funding • Funding will be used to bring VoloCity towards certification • New board includes Dr. Dieter Zetsch…...
Volocopter and DB Schenker today announced an investment by the global
logistics service provider into the pioneer of Urban Air Mobility (UAM)
as Volocopter extends its Series C funding to now a total of €87
million. Besides DB Schenker, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group, MS&AD
Ventures, and TransLink Capital (Japan Airlines and Sompo Japan
Insurance) join the round as new investors, existing investors Lukasz
Gadowski and btov also invested. The funding will go towards the
certification of the VoloCity, hiring more industry experts, and a
second generation VoloDrone to ensure commercialization of the
heavy-lift cargo drone product. To date, Volocopter has raised total
funding of €122 million.
Volocopter is developing autonomous
electrical Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft, e.g. the
VoloCity, to offer air taxi services in the megacities of this world as
an addition to existing transport options. Just recently, the company
performed a public flight over Marina Bay Reservoir in Singapore,
demonstrating the maturity of its technology. A full scale VoloPort
prototype on display allowed visitors to experience what UAM could feel
like in the future. This bears testimony to Volocopter’s holistic
approach to UAM as an ecosystem. Last October, Volocopter presented the
demonstrator of its VoloDrone, marking the company’s expansion into the
logistics, agriculture, public services and construction industries.
“We are convinced that the Volocopter technology has the potential to
bring transport logistics to the next dimension for our customers”,
says Jochen Thewes, CEO of DB Schenker. “DB Schenker has already tested
autonomous and electrical vehicles in several innovation projects and in
actual operations. By integrating the VoloDrone into our supply chain
of the future, we will be able to serve our clients’ demand for fast,
remote, emission-neutral deliveries. We are thrilled to now be part of
this drive for innovation in a fantastic team.”
“The new shareholder
structure strengthens our global network of strategic and financial
partners significantly. Bringing urban air mobility to life for
passengers and goods is a great ambition and with our new partners, we
bring the expertise and necessary long-term funds on board to make this
innovative form of mobility a reality,” says Florian Reuter, CEO of
Volocopter.
With the round’s closing, the company has also newly
appointed Yifan “Frank” Li, Vice President of Geely Holding Group Co,
Ltd., and Jochen Thewes, CEO of DB Schenker, as new additions to its
Advisory Board. In a move towards further enhancing its corporate
governance, Volocopter is bringing on two Independent Advisory Board
Members with extensive industry expertise: Former CEO of Daimler AG Dr.
Dieter Zetsche, as well as the founder of CAS Software AG, Martin
Hubschneider. Volocopter’s Chairman Stefan Klocke comments: “We very
much welcome the new members to our Advisory Board, in particular Dieter
Zetsche and Martin Hubschneider. The board will support the management
in the further strategic development of the company towards the global
market leader in urban air mobility and in the preparations for a
potential future IPO!”
Volocopter has recently championed several
public flights at Helsinki airport, in Stuttgart, and over Singapore’s
Marina Bay. As the first eVTOL company to receive Design Organisation
Approval by the European Aviation Safety Authority, the German air taxi
service provider is already actively pursuing commercial certification
and expects the first commercial routes to be opened within the next two
to four years.
About Volocopter GmbH
Volocopter
is building the world’s first sustainable and scalable urban air
mobility business to bring affordable air taxi services to megacities
worldwide. With the VoloCity, the company is developing the first fully
electric eVTOL aircraft in certification to safely and quietly transport
passengers within cities. Volocopter leads and cooperates with partners
in infrastructure, operations, and air traffic management to build the
ecosystem necessary to ‘Bring Urban Air Mobility to Life’.
In
2011, Volocopter performed the first-ever manned flight of a purely
electric multicopter and has since showcased numerous public flights
with its full-scale aircraft. Volocopter is also developing products for
the logistics and precision agriculture space with their VoloDrone.
Founded
in 2011 by Stephan Wolf and Alexander Zosel, Volocopter has 150
employees in offices in Bruchsal, Munich, and Singapore. The company is
managed by CEO Florian Reuter, CTO Jan-Hendrik Boelens, CFO Rene
Griemens, and CCO Christian Bauer, and has raised a total of €122
million in equity. Volocopter‘s investors include Daimler, Geely, DB
Schenker, Intel Capital, Team Europe, BtoV, Micron, Mitsui Sumitomo
Insurance Group, TransLink Capital (Japan Airlines and Sompo Japan
Insurance), MS&AD Ventures, and Manta Ray Ventures.
Source : www.dbschenker.com