Cars.com Inc., a leading automotive marketplace platform that provides a robust set of industry-specific digital solutions, has closed the acquisition of CreditIQ. CreditIQ is a cutting-edge automotive fintech platform that provides instant online loan screening and approvals to facilitate online car buying.
Cars.com paid $30 million at the closing on November 5, 2021, which was funded using cash on hand. There may be future payments of up to an additional $50 million in performance-based cash consideration to be earned over the next three years.
“The acquisition of CreditIQ technology facilitates CARS’ entry into the rapidly-growing, multi-billion dollar Auto Finance market, expanding our TAM beyond the $35 billion Auto Advertising and Dealer Technology markets we operate in today. We’re excited to participate in this space with powerful digital solutions for dealers that facilitate online financing and enable them to better compete,” said Alex Vetter, President and Chief Executive Officer of CARS. “The acquisition of this scalable technology supports our vision of creating frictionless omni-channel experiences and further growing our platform capabilities for buyers and sellers, building on our competitive advantage and delivering additional value to our shareholders.”
Founded in 2014 by automotive and lending software experts Bill Liatsis, Anthony Liatsis, and Bill Gerhard, CreditIQ is headquartered in New York and develops digital retail financing technology designed to facilitate online car sales and streamline in-store processes for auto dealers.