03
May
2019
|
13:02
Europe/Amsterdam

Toyota Financial Services to take majority stake in Faxi start-up

Summary

· UK based start-up developed unique app and software platform for incentivised carpooling

· Key objective is to reduce single occupancy vehicle rides as well as the congestion and emissions that they cause

· Investment, as part of a consortium, will accelerate expansion of projects across Europe and the globe

· Investment underlines Toyota’s ambition to become a mobility services provider

Companies are under growing pressure to transform their organisations into sustainable workplaces. Employees are increasingly waking up to the fact that they pay a high cost for commuting, affecting both their finances as well as the environment. Cities and communities are struggling with issues such as deteriorating air quality and traffic congestion.

Seeing these societal trends led London-based Faxi to pioneer a concept, called ‘incentivised carpooling’. The start-up developed a unique app and software platform to tackle commuting related concerns for the benefit of companies, employees and cities. Through the app, users can find and connect with colleagues who share the same route to work and commute at similar times. It allows companies to verify employee carpooling in real time and to offer incentives and rewards, such as priority parking, to car poolers.

These remuneration policies have proven to be successful: one UK based customer increased co-worker carpooling from under 10 to over 200 passengers and drivers per month in just six months.

Growing ambitions for partnership

In 2018, driven by a customer-focused approach, Toyota Financial Services (TFS) decided to start working with Faxi for the development of a Toyota branded carpooling platform to offer incentivised carpooling in Europe. Toyota currently runs several projects across 6 cities in Europe and 3 around the globe.

Seeing similar needs across cities in Europe, TFS has now decided to invest in Faxi, becoming the majority shareholder. Aioi Nissay Dowa Europe / Toyota Insurance Management also invested, joining existing shareholder the Indigo group. The ambition is to scale the Faxi platform across Europe and beyond, expanding the current number of cities and projects.

In addition to delivering sales support for environmentally friendly hybrid electric technology, Toyota Financial Services is engaging in new mobility solutions. Building on the partnership with Faxi, TFS decided to invest in Faxi to introduce technology to reduce single occupancy vehicles and the congestion and emissions that they cause.  This is a game-changing technology and we’re excited to get behind it with our brand.
Doug Gillies, Managing Director of Toyota Financial Services (UK) PLC
Large organisations across the globe have workplace parking issues. In addition to benefiting companies by solving this concern, employees are encouraged to carpool with co-workers by for example earning a reserved parking space. Ultimately, if more people carpool, this can have a considerable downsizing effect on the number of cars on the road, benefitting an entire community.
Tony Lynch, Chief Executive and co-founder of Faxi

With the patent pending, the Faxi technology brings people safely together to share common journeys. It helps communities of people to share the costs of their carpool simply and fairly, by reimbursing the driver for fuel and wear and tear. By using smart phone telemetry to measure the proximity of the driver and passengers, it can prove whether or not journeys have in fact been shared. This not only allows organisations to offer specific incentives, such as prioritised parking or other financial benefits. It also provides valuable data to local and central governments on the congestion and environmental savings that are being generated by carpooling.

 

Additional quotes:

As part of the Toyota family we constantly seek to jointly explore new ways to meet tomorrow’s challenges today. This joint investment in Faxi is reflective of our desire to focus on activities that will reduce the environmental impact that mobility creates whilst also delivering a seamless customer experience.  We look forward to playing our role in this exciting venture as we seek to lead the way in the provision of mobility protection products.
Michael Kainzbauer, CEO Toyota Insurance Management SE, COO Aioi Nissay Dowa Europe Limited
Indigo Group has been all about mobility from the very beginning. For many of our clients and customers, workplace parking can be a considerable issue. No parking, no mobility…And without mobility, the development of urban areas is impossible. We became a Faxi shareholder in 2017, consistent with our strategic effort in developing new individual mobility and digitalization services.We aim to deploy these services across our on and off-street network, both in France and internationally. We are extremely delighted to partner with Toyota in helping Faxi’s services grow across Europe and beyond. We see this collaboration as an incredible opportunity to have an additional positive impact on the local communities we serve.
Serge Clémente, President of the Executive Board, Indigo Group

For media enquiries:

Parm Heer/Patrick Moorcroft/Wendy Harrison

Tel: +44 (0) 208 977 9132

Email: AND-Eteam@harrisonsadler.com

Boilerplate

Toyota Financial Services

Wherever we operate, we conduct business with the highest ethical standards and a fair and sincere attitude. We aim to have a positive impact in the communities in which we operate. Our products and services differ from country to country to meet market conditions and regulatory requirements, but around the world we are a company focused on delivering quality products that meet our customers’ needs. Our vision is to create value by enabling freedom of movement and our mission is to provide sound financial services that contribute to a prosperous life for Toyota customers and others.

Faxi

Our mission is to be the leading platform providing provable ridesharing services and sustainable mobility solutions for large organisations. We are achieving this by building private transport networks of existing commuters by offering priority parking to co-workers who rideshare and by brokering peer-to-peer pay-per-seat transport. In this way, we will have commuter transport networks fully established and ready to transfer to the driverless car fleets of the future.

 www.faxi.co.uk

Aioi Nissay Dowa Europe/Toyota Insurance Management

The Aioi Nissay Dowa Europe Group (AND-E) is a group of companies, headed by Aioi Nissay Dowa Europe Limited (ANDEL), who are subsidiaries of the Japanese insurance giant MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings, one of Asia’s largest insurance groups. With a principal focus on providing auto-centric insurance and protection products, either directly or on behalf of strategic partners, AND-E offers both retail and corporate products with the approach tailored to best meet local needs. AND-E’s vision is ‘To lead the way in connected mobility protection’.

AND-E has a close working partnership with Toyota Motor Corporation, the largest single shareholder of MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings. Through its majority shareholding in Toyota Insurance Management SE (TIM), it provides Toyota's insurance expertise across Europe, and the same for Lexus under the trading style of Lexus Insurance Management.

AND-E acquired Insure The Box Limited, the largest telematics insurance provider in the UK. Other subsidiaries include the life insurance company, Aioi Nissay Dowa Life Insurance of Europe AG (ANDLIE).

www.aioinissaydowa.eu www.toyota-im.com

Indigo Group

Indigo is a French group and the world leader for parking and individual mobility. Indigo employs 20,000 people across 10 countries and in over 750 cities.

It is the only parking service operator present on three continents and in all parking segments: on-street, off-street and shared private car parks. Indigo operates more than 5,050 car parks throughout the world, with over 2.3 million parking spaces and over 3,000 km of on-street parking. Indigo provides services to both local authorities and private organisations (hospitals, shopping malls, train stations, airports, universities, etc.) and develops innovative mobility solutions to make it easier for users to get around their cities.

In a booming mobility market estimated to reach €100bn by 2025, Indigo is a key player as far as the mobility of the future is concerned. INDIGO. Making space for the future.

www.group-indigo.com