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Volt Lines, Turkey’s leading subscription-based transportation service, raised $1.28M pre-Series A round led by Dubai Angel Investors with follow-on from MEVP and Hedef Filo. The round was led by DAI and its members with $780K, while the rest came as follow-on from MEVP, Hedef Filo, and Wassim Matar.

Volt Lines plans to use the funding to more than double its engineering team, accelerate its growth in Istanbul, and finalize plans for a MENA expansion. Together with this round, the startup has raised a total of $1.65M since incorporation exactly a year ago.

Founded by Lebanese transportation tech entrepreneur Ali Halabi, and backed by a mix of Turkish and MENA investors, Volt Lines went into operations in April 2018, and now operates 150+ lines in the city, crossing $1.1M of annual recurring revenue in less than 6 months of market entry.

The startup covers the commute of employees from their homes to the office and back by providing transportation along express lines operated by 16-seater mini-buses. The Volt Lines network can be imagined as a smart public transportation network of buses that dynamically change depending on demand and a population’s commute patterns.

Ali Halabi commented, “I’m very excited to see Dubai Angel Investors joining our journey and solidifying Volt Lines’ connection to Dubai and the region. Having this incredible network on-board inches Volt Lines closer to a strong and meaningful MENA launch as we continue to exponentially grow our fortified Turkish business.”

Kushal Shah, Head of Digital and Technology Roland Berger (Middle East and Asia founder of Dubai Angel Investors) said, “The future is increasingly modular, giving customers choice, affordability and relevance. Voltlines is at the heart of this. Ali is a special entrepreneur, and I believe Voltlines will bring ‘the city as a service’ concept closer to our region.”

“Volt Lines’ value proposition and speed of execution makes it one the fastest growing companies in the region today. We look forward to taking this journey to expand Volt Lines offering across the region and we’ll be backing their MENA roll-out plans” commented Walid Mansour, Partner and CIO at MEVP.