Velca, the Spanish manufacturer of 100% electric motorcycles and e-bikes, has raised €5.3 million in a Series A financing round that will be used for its international expansion. This new round comes from a capital increase of 3.5 million euros by various investment funds, an Enisa of 600,000 euros and bank financing of 1.2 million euros. The transaction has been supervised by the law firm On Tax.
Velca, which has just participated in the last edition of the EICMA in Milan, the most important Motorcycle Event in Europe, faces this international expansion with three markets in sight: Italy, France and Germany. And it does it with an urban focus, so its goal is to obtain distribution in each of the countries, but seeks to make its entry through the main European cities.
The round has been led by three investment funds. Sherry Ventures, has contributed €600,000. Its manager, Tomás Pérez, emphasizes his position stating that “decarbonization is one of our main investment axes and Velca is one of the European companies with the greatest potential to decarbonize urban environments”.
For its part, the Galician company Noso Capital has contributed a total of €500,000. Antonio Romero-Haupold, manager of the fund, says that “we joined Velca because of the leadership conveyed by Emilio and his team. Our goal is to help the company in the areas of production, sales and its entry into the stock market”.
Finally, BeHappy Investments has contributed €500,000. Miguel Ángel Rodríguez, President of BeHappy Investments, assures that “Velca has all the characteristics we look for in our projects; a sustainable purpose, a very promising business projection and a top level human team”.
These entities have also recently joined the board of directors of Velca, whose objective for 2024, in addition to initiating its international expansion, is also to continue expanding its product portfolio, which currently has 13 models of electric vehicles and more than 3,000 in circulation.
On the other hand, the rest of the financing comes from Santander Galicia and Sabadell Galicia, which have contributed with financing lines of 1.2 million euros and an Enisa of 600,000 euros, the third largest of the year. This public company under the Ministry of Industry is dedicated to financing viable and innovative business projects of Spanish SMEs, another example of the confidence in the business model that Velca presents to the market of 100% electric and sustainable mobility.
“We are in a very positive moment as a company. This year we hope to close it with 90% growth in a context in which electric motorcycle registrations have fallen by 30%,” explains Emilio Froján, CEO and co-founder of Velca. “We have always wanted to be the leading brand of electric motorcycles in Europe, we are currently the second Spanish manufacturer in the private channel and the first Spanish manufacturer of mopeds. We are ready to make the leap to Europe,” he adds.
New additions to the board of directors
During the month of October, the company welcomed two new members to its board of directors. On the one hand, Jaume Xicola, CEO of SHAD-NAD and investment partner of BeHappy Investments, and Antonio Romero-Haupold Caballero, former president of Faconauto and AEMAB (Asociación de Empresas del Mercado Alternativo Bursátil), joined the board.
Xicola is a professional with more than 15 years of experience linked to the motor sector. He began his professional career in the family company SHAD-NAD, dedicated to the manufacture and technological development of seats and trunks for motorcycles, present in more than 80 countries with more than 6,000 points of sale.
Romero-Haupold is known for his extensive experience in the business world. He specialized in the motor industry during his years as president of Faconauto, the Federation of Automotive Dealer Associations. During his time with the organization, he promoted the commitment to establish legislation to regulate the rights and duties of dealers in the national territory, achieving important advances for the sector. He has also served as President of the Association of Alternative Stock Market Companies.