Airalo Raises $60 Million for eSIM Marketplace: Startup Funding Roundup

Three tech startups involved in the travel industry announced more than $78 million in funding this week. 

>>Airalo, a marketplace for eSIM purchases, has raised $60 million in series B funding. 

It was led by e& capital, with support from Antler Elevate, Liberty Global, Orange, T.Capital, Rakuten Capital, Singtel Innov8, Telefónica Ventures, Sequoia Capital India, Peak XV Partners, KPN Ventures, and I2BF Global Ventures.

The Delaware-based startup said it has now raised a total of $67.3 million. 

Digital SIM cards, or eSIMs, give travelers with certain mobile phones a digital alternative to purchasing physical SIM cards when they arrive in a new destination, often necessary to use mobile data without incurring roaming charges. 

Airalo said its marketplace gives travelers access to various eSIM options covering more than 200 countries and regions. 

The capital will go toward expanding business and hiring, as well as introducing Airalo Partners, a service for businesses. There’s also a plan to expand the website and app from 22 languages to 53.

>>GoTab, a software platform that hotels can use to help manage dining operations, has raised $18 million in series A funding led by Truist Ventures.

The startup has now raised more than $24 million, according to Crunchbase. 

The Virginia-based platform is meant to help hotels, resorts, entertainment venues, restaurants, and others manage dining operations. The software platform offers products including point-of-sale, kitchen display system, kiosks, mobile ordering, and payments. 

Hilton is among the startup’s clients. 

“Our goal from the beginning has been to help businesses run better through our host of solutions that address virtually every commerce, operations, and fulfillment issue operators and their teams encounter,” said Tim McLaughlin, CEO and cofounder of GoTab, in a statement.

The capital will go toward strengthening the software and expanding business. 

>>Crqlar, a business intelligence product for hotels, has raised a pre-seed round of more than $550,000 (€500,000). Investors included Rudolf Flunger, Gregor Hoch, and the Bocconi 4 Innovation accelerator program in Italy.

The Austria-based startup said it uses AI to aggregate and clean existing data, meant to help hotels automate guest activity predictions and services such as tailored marketing. 

The funding will go toward improving the platform and expanding business in Austria, Germany, and Italy.

Skift Cheat Sheet

Seed capital is money used to start a business, often led by angel investors and friends or family.

Series A financing is typically drawn from venture capitalists. The round aims to help a startup’s founders make sure that their product is something that customers truly want to buy.

Series B financing is mainly about venture capitalist firms helping a company grow faster. These fundraising rounds can assist in recruiting skilled workers and developing cost-effective marketing.

Series C financing is ordinarily about helping a company expand, such as through acquisitions. In addition to VCs, hedge funds, investment banks, and private equity firms often participate.

Series D, E, and, beyond These mainly mature businesses and the funding round may help a company prepare to go public or be acquired. A variety of types of private investors might participate.