Korean ride-sharing app Poolus attracts W22b investment

Poolus, a ride-sharing app developed by a South Korean startup, has lured 22 billion won ($19.6 million) in its first funding round, the company said Monday.

A group of big-name investors has participated in the funding, including a joint fund launched by the South Korean portal giant Naver and Mirae Asset, as well as SK Corp., the holding company of SK Group. Other investors included Yellowdog, a venture capital firm for startups and Collaborative Fund, a US investment fund that has invested in Uber‘s rival Lyft and crowdfunding enterprise Kickstarter.

Poolus, a ride-sharing app developed by a South Korean startup. Poolus

“We plan to use the first part of the fund for technological development (so that we can) expand the market and develop services to improve customers’ convenience, and to secure quality human resources to make such development possible,” said Kim Tae-ho, CEO of Poolus, in a statement.

Poolus was launched in 2016 as the country’s first ride-sharing app, according to the company, and has been expanding its services to across the country, the company said.

By Cho Chung-un(christory@heraldcorp.com)