Vok Bikes, an Estonian firm behind a brand new era of four-wheeled electrical cargo bikes, has raised €5 million to additional increase throughout Europe and speed up the shift away from vans in metropolis centres.
The Sequence A funding spherical is led by SQM Lithium Ventures, the company enterprise capital crew affiliated with SQM Worldwide Lithium (SQMi). The spherical was joined by present buyers Metaplanet, Specialist VC, Sunly, and SmartCap – Estonia’s state-backed VC fund, whose Inexperienced Fund funding is supported by the EU’s NextGenerationEU restoration plan.
“Vans are a blunt instrument for a precision job,” says Indrek Petjärv, CEO and Co-founder of Vok Bikes. “Cities have modified, and Vok is designed for the way they transfer as we speak.”
Based in 2019, Vok Bikes designs and manufactures automotive-grade, four-wheeled electrical cargo bikes constructed particularly for business use in dense city environments.
Since launching in 2020, the corporate has emphasised in-house engineering, leading to improvements like its proprietary 4Drive drivetrain, which reportedly delivers superior trip high quality and sturdiness in comparison with typical cargo bikes.
Vok serves a variety of purchasers from nationwide postal providers to meals supply platforms and micro-service suppliers in 14 international locations throughout Europe, serving purchasers from a cellular automobile wash within the Netherlands to bakeries in London.
Early adopter Wolt has scaled its fleet in seven international locations, and IKEA shops in Utrecht and Stockholm now provide Vok bikes for buyer leases.
In complete, Vok Bikes has raised over €10 million in enterprise capital.
“We’re thrilled to help a model that’s redefining electromobility,” mentioned Mark Fones, CEO of SQM Worldwide Lithium. “Vok’s in-house 4Drive system and top-tier engineering strategy have raised the bar by delivering reliability and trip high quality on par with automotive requirements.”
As cities tighten emissions rules and take care of worsening congestion, Vok presents an alternate that’s each environmentally pleasant and commercially viable.
In a take a look at by e-bike rental firm Zoomo, a Vok XL beat a van by 20 minutes on a supply route via London – a 44% sooner supply time with zero emissions and no parking delays.
In line with figures offered by Vok, value comparisons present that Vok is as much as 64% extra environment friendly than small metropolis vans over 5 years, because of decrease gasoline, upkeep, tax, and parking bills. In cities like London, 66% of vans function with lower than half of their cargo area used. Vok is right-sized for metropolis deliveries, with no “wasted weight, vitality, or area“.
“Every Vok e-bike produces as much as 95% much less CO₂ than a petroleum automobile, carries as much as 100 deliveries, and glides via metropolis site visitors,” mentioned Mark Bushby of Fashionable Milkman, a UK-based supply firm. “We’re already seeing the enterprise and environmental advantages.”
With new funding, sturdy consumer traction, and a product engineered for contemporary logistics, Vok Bikes is aiming to turn into a key participant within the shift towards sustainable city mobility.
