Singapore’s Carousell buys car classifieds start-up Caarly, eyeing Hong Kong’s used car market

In a bid to expand its car classifieds features across Asia, Singapore-based mobile marketplace Carousell recently acquired Caarly, an online platform for car dealers and individual sellers to list used cars, as the company doubles down on international expansion and monetisation.

Quek Siu Rui, co-founder and chief executive of Carousell, said the Caarly acquisition came about when the company noticed an increase in used car listings together with a shift in the demographic of users in Singapore, over half of whom are aged over 25 with higher purchasing power.

“We’ve seen how their evolving needs have resulted in more listings and greater demand in higher value verticals like cars,” Quek said.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Carousell allows users to sign up and put up items for sale. Interested buyers can message the seller in-app to close a deal on a particular listing.

After the acquisition, individuals and car dealers who use Caarly to manage their inventory and listings can also choose to directly list on the Carousell marketplace in Singapore with a few simple clicks within the Caarly app.

The acquisition solidifies Carousell’s efforts to become a leading classifieds marketplace globally, Quek said.