The archive · Consumer Apps · Strategic decision · 2018–2025
Kovi's car-subscription bet for app drivers ends in a $290M all-stock sale to Moove
Ex-99 execs leased cars to ride-hail drivers on flexible terms, grew 50% a year, hit breakeven in Dec 2024, then sold to Uber-backed Moove at $290M.
Kovi
What the business is
Kovi leases cars from automakers and subleases them to Uber/99 drivers on flexible contracts with per-kilometer payment options, its own workshops, and later used cars; it operated in Brazil and Mexico.
Starting capital：R$500M (~US$104M) round in 2021, its last; more than US$100M cumulative from Monashees, Valor Capital, Prosus Ventures and others.
How it started
Founded in 2018 in São Paulo by Adhemar Milani Neto and João Costa, both ex-executives of ride-hail app 99, betting that drivers locked out of bank car loans would subscribe to leased vehicles on flexible terms. Y Combinator accelerated it, and investors including Monashees, Valor Capital, Globo Ventures, Maya Capital and Prosus Ventures put in more than US$100M.
What happened
Its last round, R$500M (~US$104M) in 2021, was meant to fund LatAm expansion, but the chip crisis cut new-vehicle supply, so Kovi focused on Brazil and Mexico, added used cars and its own workshops, and stayed lean. The CEO says revenue grew 50% in each of the three years to 2024; NeoFeed reports about R$550M in 2024 revenue and a first breakeven month in December 2024 (over R$50M revenue, roughly R$20M EBITDA), after a period one investor described as 'almost died' and convertible notes on bad terms.
How it ended up
On January 28-29, 2025, Uber-backed Nigerian fintech Moove acquired Kovi in an all-stock deal valuing it at US$290M — less than half its ~US$600M peak — creating a group with US$275M pro-forma 2024 revenue and 36,000 vehicles across 19 cities. Kovi kept its brand, management and CEO, who also became a founder of Moove.
Background
Kovi is a Brazilian car-subscription startup founded in 2018 by Adhemar Milani Neto and João Costa, ex-executives of ride-hail app 99. Instead of selling cars, it leased vehicles from automakers and subleased them to Uber and 99 drivers on flexible contracts — reduced fees, per-kilometer payment options and its own workshops — betting that drivers locked out of bank financing would subscribe rather than buy.
Backed by Y Combinator and more than US$100M from Monashees, Valor Capital, Globo Ventures, Maya Capital and Prosus, Kovi's last round was R$500M (~US$104M) in 2021, meant to fund Latin American expansion. The chip crisis froze new-vehicle supply, so it concentrated on Brazil and Mexico, added used cars, and kept growing — revenue rose about 50% in each of the three years through 2024, to roughly R$550M (~US$94M), with a first breakeven month in December 2024.
In January 2025, Uber-backed Nigerian mobility fintech Moove bought Kovi in an all-stock deal valuing it at US$290M — less than half its ~US$600M peak. The combined group reported US$275M pro-forma 2024 revenue and 36,000 vehicles across 19 cities; Kovi kept its brand and management in Brazil and Mexico.
What has to be true
- The 99 pedigree meant Kovi's founders knew exactly who couldn't get car financing and what terms drivers would accept, so product-market fit was built into the founding team.
- Asset-light leasing let Kovi scale into Mexico without owning vehicles, while its own workshops cut service costs that crush traditional rental fleets.
- Raising R$500M in 2021 just before the chip crisis froze supply forced focus on unit economics, delivering three straight years of about 50% growth.
- When growth needed new capital, the cold market set the price: an all-stock sale at US$290M, roughly half peak, beat what one investor called 'almost died'.
What can be applied
A business can compound 50% a year for three years and still sell for half its peak when it needs capital in a cold market; funding cycles, not growth, set your exit price.
Aftermath
As of September 2026, Kovi operates under its own brand as a Moove subsidiary in Brazil and Mexico. Kovi's shareholders received about 25% of Moove in the all-stock deal, making them its largest combined block; Adhemar Milani Neto sits on Moove's global board and leads Brazil, roughly 40% of group revenue (~US$200M of US$430M). Moove raised US$250M at a US$2.1B valuation in August 2026 (Brazil Journal) and signed exclusive long-term Waymo fleet-operating deals for Miami, Phoenix and London.
Sources
- Moove, fintech africana apoiada pela Uber, compra a Kovi
- Moove, uma investida do Uber, compra a Kovi
- Na transação da Moove com a Kovi, um negócio não tão bom quanto parece
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