Finnish Smartphone Reseller Swappie Raises $124M

Swappie, a Finnish smartphone reseller aimed at offering people access to the “circular smartphone economy” has raised $124 million in a Series C funding round.

According to multiple media reports Tuesday (Feb. 15), the funding round was led by growth equity firm Verdane, bringing Swappie’s total funding to north of $171 million.

“We truly believe that Swappie can drive consumer awareness and trust in the sector by standardizing quality, championing the role of sustainability, and making buying a refurbished smartphone as common as buying a used car,” said Sami Marttinen, the Helsinki-based company’s co-founder and CEO.

Founded in 2016 by Marttinen and current CMO Jiri Heinonen, Swappie says its goal is to make smartphone economy more accessible and environmentally friendly.

Swappie says the market for used and refurbished smartphones is projected to increase at an annual growth rate of 10.23% over the next five years, with smartphones predicted to generate 146 million tons of CO2 emissions in this year. The longer people hold onto the phones, the more emissions they can prevent, the company said.

“As people and companies progressively move towards a more sustainable lifestyle, the iPhone refurbishment and re-commerce space has grown considerably, and with it Swappie, which has demonstrated the potential to become Europe’s market leader in refurbished smartphones,” said Janne Holmia, partner at Verdane.

Read more: Smartphone Procurement Firm everphone Raises $200M

Smartphone reCommerce is popular in the B2C and B2B worlds, as PYMNTS has reported in the past. In late 2021, German phone-as-a-service provider everphone raised $200 million to expand its efforts in Europe, with an eye towards launching in the U.S.

The Berlin company helps corporate clients procure, manage and integrate employee-issued smartphones and tablets. After two years, said founder Jan Dzulko, each phone commissioned is taken out of service, refurbished and reissued.

Also in 2021, the device reseller EcoATM raised $75 million to help fund new automated retail kiosks around the world. In June, the company said it was able to reach 28 million smartphone/mobile device reCommerce users, indicating a demand for device recycling.

See also: Used Smartphone Reseller ecoATM Nets $75 Million For Expansion

“This is not only more sustainable, but it also helps to bridge the massive digital divide, enabling us to bring affordable smartphones and internet access to people around the world,” CEO Dave Maquera said at the time.