Luup, Inc. (Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Daiki Okai; hereinafter “Luup”) has raised a total of approximately 4.5 billion yen, of which approximately 3.8 billion yen through equity issuance and approximately 0.7 billion yen through debt and asset financing. The new funding brings Luup’s total capital raised to date to approximately 9.1 billion yen. Luup will use the funds raised to further expand its business by increasing the number of stations and improving its vehicles and apps, while focusing more on strengthening safety measures and raising awareness of new traffic rules in preparation for the enforcement of the revised Road Traffic Act on July 1, 2023.

As in the previous round, Spiral Capital is the lead investor in equity issuance, and additional investments were made by existing investors such as ANRI, SMBC Venture Capital, and Mori Trust, in addition to new investors including one of the largest pension funds in Japan, 31VENTURES, a corporate venture capital of Mitsui Fudosan, and Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation. In addition, we have initiated transactions with several new financial institutions in debt and asset financing.

Investors participating in the equity issuance

Existing Investors
・ANRI
・SMBC Venture Capital
・Spiral Capital
・ZENRIN FUTURE PARTNERS
・Chiba Dojo Fund
・Mitsubishi UFJ Capital
・Mori Trust

New Investors
・31VENTURES Global Innovation Fund 2
・GMO Internet Group
・i-nest capital
・SMBC Nikko Securities
・Green Coinvest
・Chishima Real Estate
・Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation
・One other company

Comment from the Investors 

・Takashi Chiba, Partner, Spiral Capital

Following the previous round, we made an additional investment in this round as the lead investor. The reason for this is that Luup is a rare company that is truly trying to create a “social infrastructure”. It is no mean feat to build a service that can be called a transportation infrastructure, as it requires cooperation of numerous stakeholders, including users, landowners, local governments, relevant ministries, investors, and public opinion. Since the launch of the e-scooter business in April 2021, Luup, under the strong leadership of Mr. Okai and his management team, has developed stations at an overwhelming speed, promoted the creation of a safe and secure system in cooperation with relevant ministries. The products have become popular among users and are used daily, leading to the company’s dominant position in the field of micromobility. With the implementation of the revised Road Traffic Law, which is expected to further improve convenience, scheduled for July 1 of this year, we expect that the product will continue to evolve as a transportation infrastructure that enriches people’s daily lives.

・Shunsuke Nakaji, Principal, ANRI

We have had the opportunity to watch the Luup team for a long time as they have implemented what they initially envisioned year after year, and we have high expectations for their ability to continue to execute, which is why we made this additional investment.
We are honored to have had the opportunity to make additional investments in all of the rounds of funding, starting from the pre-seed discussion of the idea stage, through the first round of funding, and up to the current round.
We still have a long way to go in creating an infrastructure that makes the entire city ‘a station front,’ but I have high expectations for Luup.

・31VENTURES
Atsumi Kanaya, Executive Officer and General Manager of Venture Co-creation Department, Mitsui Fudosan / Yuki Matsuo, Director, Global Brain

We are working with Luup to provide sharing services of mobility exclusively for condominium residents, aiming not only to improve user satisfaction by making daily transportation more convenient, but also to increase the value of real estate itself. We have also invested in the company because we share the desire to not only provide a new means of transportation, but also to create a new type of urban development through micromobility.
As a partner in creating attractive cities, we will continue to support Luup in its mission to “create an infrastructure that makes the entire city ‘a station front.’”

Comment from Daiki Okai, CEO of Luup

With the mission to “create an infrastructure that makes the entire city ‘a station front,’” Luup provides a sharing service for electric, compact, and single-passenger micromobility “LUUP” in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Yokohama, Utsunomiya, and Kobe. The number of stations has already exceeded 3,000 in the two years since the introduction of e-scooters, and we plan to expand our service area into multiple urban cities. Just as railroad companies once developed cities along their lines, we aim to contribute to the value of the surrounding properties by creating LUUP stations on properties far from the train station. We are very pleased that we were able to raise this capital despite the unstable market conditions, and we believe that this is a result of the recognition of LUUP’s value as a sustainable transportation infrastructure, which is necessary for the future.

After the implementation of the revised Road Traffic Law scheduled for July 1 of this year, the number of micromobility users is expected to further increase. We are currently receiving inquiries from many property owners, municipalities, and companies. To expand our business, we believe it is important to fulfill our responsibility as a leading company in the industry and work to improve safety and educate people about the correct rules.

Although there are now more than 60 members in Luup, a small number of professionals in the company cooperate with each other to develop and operate the business in each function, such as software development, hardware development, product development, local collaboration, station expansion, operation construction, and corporate development. We will continue to maintain our small number of highly skilled members and aim to be an organization that creates new transportation infrastructure in the future.

We are looking forward to hearing from those who want to build LUUP with us, so that 50 years from now, when people look back on the past, they will say, “LUUP is what made this city what it is”.

The entire Luup team will continue to work with our full effort to realize our mission to “create an infrastructure that makes the entire city ‘a station front’”, and we look forward to your continued support.

About Luup, Inc.
Luup, Inc. will create a new short-distance mobility infrastructure that makes the entire city “a station front” through the sharing service of electric, compact, and single-passenger micromobility. We currently provide a high-density sharing service of e-scooters and e-bikes in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Yokohama, Utsunomiya, and Kobe. We will reduce CO2 emissions by popularizing electric micromobility and introduce new electric mobility that can be ridden by the elderly, and ultimately create a sustainable society where all people can get around safely and conveniently.

• Location: AKIHABARA CENTRAL SQUARE 4F, 3-21-24 Kanda-Sakumachō, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0025
• Representative: Daiki Okai
• Founded: July 2018
• URL: https://luup.sc/

Press Contact
● Luup, Inc.
Public Relations: Misato Matsumoto, Megumi Muramoto
E-mail: pr@luup.co.jp

FamilyMart Co.,Ltd. (Head office: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Kensuke Hosomi; hereinafter “FamilyMart”) and Luup, Inc. (Head office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Daiki Okai; hereinafter “Luup”) agreed on a strategic partnership, and FamilyMart made a strategic investment in Luup. Through this partnership, the two companies will begin full-scale collaboration, including the installation of LUUP ports at FamilyMart stores and joint marketing effort.

FamilyMart operates approximately 16,600 stores nationwide (*1) and aims to be an indispensable place that goes beyond convenience while staying close to the community and connecting with each and every customer like family. Currently, FamilyMart is working to build stores that can focus on more heart-to-heart communication with customers by proactively utilizing new technologies, such as unattended payment systems, beverage refilling robots, and digital signage to provide an unprecedented store experience for customers who visit the stores.

Luup is developing “LUUP,” a sharing service for electric, compact, and single-passenger micromobility, with the mission to “create an infrastructure that turns the entire city into a ‘station front.’” In particular, as an e-scooter sharing service provider, Luup holds more than 90% of the domestic market share (*2). In the future, Luup aims to handle not only e-scooters and e-bikes but also a wide range of other mobilities to create a future in which all people can move freely.

FamilyMart will use this alliance as an opportunity to support Luup’s future growth so that users can use its service safely and securely. The two companies will fully cooperate in accelerating the installation of LUUP ports in FamilyMart stores, improving safety utilizing FamilyMart’s store assets, cross-selling between FamilyMart and LUUP, and other activities.

*1 As of April 2022
*2 Based on the total distance traveled under the New Business Exception System for businesses that are members of the Micromobility Promotion Council from 2021 The Third Meeting of Working Group on Vehicle Safety Measures (March 14, 2022) Summary of the E-Scooter Demonstration Experiment Results and Safety Measures
https://www.mlit.go.jp/common/001469846.pdf

Major Initiatives

1. Installation of LUUP ports at FamilyMart stores
FamilyMart and Luup began working together in October 2020, and several FamilyMart stores in Tokyo have already installed LUUP ports. By expanding the number of stores with LUUP ports installed, we will contribute to improving convenience for FamilyMart store users, and also, work together to popularize the LUUP service through the expansion of the port network. In addition to the areas LUUP is currently available in; Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, and Yokohama, we plan to install LUUP ports at stores in regional cities as the LUUP service area expands. Both companies will also work together to improve the safety of LUUP’s services through in-store educational activities and announcements.

2. Cross-selling through collaborative marketing initiatives
We will implement joint marketing initiatives to promote the use of LUUP by FamilyMart store users and the use of FamilyMart stores by LUUP users, respectively. Specifically, the two companies will consider advertising LUUP in FamilyMart stores, including the use of digital signage, and implementing promotional initiatives for FamilyMart products to LUUP users.

3. Joint consideration of new services
We will develop new services by utilizing the customer and mobility data owned by FamilyMart and Luup respectively, as well as the store and port networks. Through these efforts, we aim to grow the business of both FamilyMart and Luup and contribute to local communities.

About FamilyMart Co.,Ltd.
Location: 3-1-21 Shibaura, Minato-ku,Tokyo 108-0023
Representative: Kensuke Hosomi
Founded: September 1st, 1981
URL: https://www.family.co.jp/

About Luup, Inc.
Location: 16F Link Square Shinjuku, 5-27-5 Sendagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-0051
Representative: Daiki Okai
Founded: July 2018
URL: https://luup.sc/

Press Contact
● Luup, Inc.
Public Relations: Misato Matsumoto, Megumi Muramoto
E-mail: pr@luup.co.jp

Luup, Inc. (Head office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Daiki Okai; hereinafter “Luup”), which operates “LUUP,” a sharing service of electric micromobility including e-scooters and e-bikes, has raised a total of 1 billion yen through debt and asset financing. This is the first time in Japan (*1) that an e-scooter sharing service operator has raised funds through asset financing. This financing brings Luup’s total funding to approximately 4.6 billion yen.

The financing is done through sale-and-leaseback transactions (*2) of e-scooters with several financial institutions, including Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing, Mitsubishi HC Capital, and others, and through receiving loans from MUFG Bank, Japan Finance Corporation, and The Shoko Chukin Bank, the latter two being Japanese government-backed financial institutions. This financing was provided for all e-scooters to be introduced by May, and discussions are underway with each financial institution to expand transactions for vehicles to be introduced in the future.

The financial institutions acknowledged Luup’s stability as a business and its contribution to decarbonization and sustainability. Luup will continue to expand its business by utilizing debt and asset finance in addition to equity finance.

Luup’s Past and Outlook for the Future

Luup provides a sharing service for electric, compact, and single-passenger micromobility with the mission to “create an infrastructure that makes the entire city ‘a station front.’” The rollout began with e-bikes in May 2020, followed by the introduction of e-scooters in April 2021 as a demonstration experiment using the “System of Special Arrangements for Corporate Field Tests” under Japan’s Industrial Competitiveness Enhancement Act. Luup accounts for more than 90% share of e-scooter rides under the System of Special Arrangements for Corporate Field Tests for Micromobility Promotion Council member companies (*3).

Luup has been conducting its business through a series of discussions and dialogues with local governments, relevant ministries, agencies, and town residents, including users, with safety as its top priority. As a leading operator of electric micromobility sharing service, we will continue to expand the number of vehicles, ports, and service areas and evolve the service into an infrastructure that can be used more easily by city residents. At the same time, in the future, we will offer universal mobility vehicles with three or four wheels that can be used safely by the elderly and people with disabilities, aiming for a future in which all people can travel freely in the first and last mile.

Comment from Daiki Okai, Representative of Luup

To achieve our mission “to create an infrastructure that makes the entire city ‘a station front,’” we have been building our service “LUUP,” including both software and hardware products and an operating model to support them while carefully listening to the voices of the people of the city. We are very pleased that we were able to raise this scale of debt and asset financing, and we believe that this is a result of LUUP’s stability as a business and its value as a sustainable infrastructure.

Last month, a bill to amend the Road Traffic Act was submitted to the Diet, and after it is passed and enforced, the maximum speed for certain e-scooters will be 20 km/h and a driver’s license will not be required. Against the backdrop of these activities, Luup is now receiving a lot more requests from large corporations and municipalities than ever before to introduce our products.

From here, we will continue to expand our business to meet the increasing demand while improving safety. To achieve this, the cooperation of new members who will support us is indispensable. We are looking forward to hearing from those who are determined to change LUUP to realize our mission.
https://recruit.luup.sc/

The entire Luup team will continue to make every effort to realize our mission, and we appreciate your support.

*1 Surveyed by Luup
*2 In a sale-and-leaseback transaction, one party (the seller-lessee) sells an asset it owns to another party (the buyer-lessor) and simultaneously leases back all or a portion of the same asset for all, or part of, the asset’s remaining economic life.
*3 2021 The Third Meeting of Working Group on Vehicle Safety Measures (March 14, 2022) Summary of the E-Scooter Demonstration Experiment Results and Safety Measures
https://www.mlit.go.jp/common/001469846.pdf

【About Luup, Inc.】
Luup, Inc. will create a new short-distance mobility infrastructure that makes the entire city “a station front” through the sharing service of electric, compact, and single-passenger micromobility. We currently provide a high-density sharing service of e-scooters and e-bikes in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, and Yokohama. We will reduce CO2 emissions by popularizing electric micromobility and introduce new electric mobility that can be ridden by the elderly and people with disabilities, and ultimately create a sustainable society where all people can get around safely and conveniently.

Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-0051
Representative: Daiki Okai
Founded: July 2018
URL: https://luup.sc/

【Press Contact】
● Luup, Inc.
Public Relations: Misato Matsumoto, Megumi Muramoto
E-mail: pr@luup.co.jp