Grover Agrees to $260M Debt Financing Facility With M&G
Berlin-based Grover, which operates a consumer technology subscription platform, has agreed to a new 270-million-euro (about $260 million) debt financing facility with international asset manager M&G.
Grover runs a subscription model that allows people to rent consumer electronics, including computers, smartphones, games consoles and eScooters. The company will use the capital to expand its product inventory to serve demand from customers in existing markets, such as Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and Austria, as well as to expand its service into new European markets, according to a Wednesday (Sept. 28) press release.
“Technology is a basic human right,” said Grover Founder and CEO Michael Cassau in the release. “Grover is advancing the world to digital fluency so people will benefit from the experiences that the right technology in the right hands can deliver. Grover allows people to have access to more tech without getting into debt. Everyone now needs a substantial tech budget to provide basic access to the digital world. With persistent inflation, this is a demand that many cannot afford, and it’s essential we make sure access to tech is equitable.”
Grover’s customer base has grown by more than 50% since the beginning of the year, with demand “particularly strong in the U.S. and Western Europe, and in the B2B segment,” the release stated.
As Grover CFO Thomas Antonioli told PYMNTS earlier this year, the “rent-a-tech” model offers more flexible terms for consumers than alternatives and helps create a more sustainable circular economy.
Read more: Grover CFO Says Rent-a-Tech Accelerates Shift to Circular, Sustainable Economy
The company also announced in the press release new members to its board, including former media executive Joanna Coles, former Klarna Board member Sarah McPhee, former Snap Chief Financial Officer Lara Sweet and Chief Creative Officer of Snap Colleen DeCourcy.
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