Carzami, an Egyptian online retailer for second-hand cars and vehicle financing, has raised an undisclosed pre-seed round led by Contact Financial Holding, Egypt’s largest non-bank financial services provider. Carzami aims to fix the Egyptian used-car market by offering certified used cars with 360-degree virtual tours and inspection reports. Customers can order any car they like to be delivered to their doorstep to test drive, then buy with financing and insurance options. Carzami will use the funding to optimise its organisational efficiency and build on the existing functions, such as vehicle financing.
Carzami will also use the funding to continue growing its inventory, expand its fleet of delivery hauliers, enhance its operational technology, employ more staff, and build a modern reconditioning facility. The company wants to separate itself from its competitors by providing services such as the 30-day Carzami Protection Program and a 7-day “Test to Own” service where potential buyers can try out a vehicle for 7 days/200km before concluding the purchase. If unhappy, they can get a full refund or trade the tested car in for another. Carzami aims to ensure that consumers get value for their money.
In a statement shared with TechCabal, Hazem Moussa, Chairman of Contact Financial Holding, said, “Our faith in digitising the automotive market in Egypt has been with us from our early years. We launched contactcars.com in 2002 as the first car marketplace and community for both new and used cars. In addition, Contact pioneered the financing of used cars over 10 years ago. Now we believe we can support Carzami in its quest to re-invent the used car purchase experience”.
The Chairman’s thoughts were echoed by Said Zater, CEO of Contact Financial Holding, who added, “Our support for Carzami comes as a part of our continuous effort to connect with the startup scene in all aspects we can complement their work with. We believe in the ongoing digitisation of services led by exciting startups like Carzami.”
Founded in 2022 by Hussein Hosny and Adham Hosny, Carzami wants to use the funding to grow its revenue to $30 million by 2024. Hussein and Adham both have a wealth of expertise in the automobile industry. In collaboration with Synapse Analytics, the pair co-founded Sa3ar, Egypt’s first data pricing engine for used automobiles. Carzami is preparing to be an industry leader for automotive needs and requirements across the region with the help of additional team experience from BMW, Mercedes, and Porsche.
Speaking on the raise, Carzami founders, Hussein Hosny and Adham Hosny, commented: “We aim to change the way people buy and sell used cars by providing a seamless one-stop-shop platform that offers online buying, selling, and high-quality financing options. Our experience is all about trust and transparency, allowing consumers to overcome the hassle of traditional dealerships”.
