Cazoo founder Chesterman stakes another $1m on driving car site’s recovery | Business News

The founder of Cazoo, the British-based digital car-buying service, has staked another seven-figure sum on a recovery in its valuation after a precipitous share price collapse.

Sky News can reveal that Alex Chesterman invested more than $1m in Cazoo shares last week, augmenting his stake of just over 23pc.

His stock purchase, disclosed in a filing with US regulators, follows a slump in the car-buying platform’s shares since it went public through a merger with a New York-listed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) last year.

Technology companies have seen their valuations hammered in recent months amid growing fears of recession in major western economies.

Mr Chesterman’s decision to invest more of the fortune he has made as a serial creator of tech unicorns in Cazoo stock may reflect a belief on his part that the company’s share price slide has reached the bottom.

His stake in Cazoo is now worth in the region of $250m (£203m).

Cazoo more than doubled the number of cars it sold in the first quarter of the year to nearly 20,000, and saw revenues soar by 159% to £295m during the same period.

The company, which competes with the likes of Cinch, has spent tens of millions of pounds on prominent sports sponsorship deals as it has sought to build its international profile.

It has snapped up a number of rivals, including in Italy.

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Contacted by Sky News, Mr Chesterman said: “Whilst the current macroeconomic climate has driven heightened fear in the markets recently, I remain very confident in our strategy and incredibly excited by the long term opportunity that Cazoo is going after.

“Increasing my holding simply reflects my continued belief in the vision and future of the business.”