Droom uses technology, vehicle pricing, inspection, history and financing services to simplify online vehicle transactions.
Discover how Sandeep Aggarwal built Droom into a full-stack online vehicle marketplace with pricing, inspection, vehicle-history and financing services, and learn about its funding, growth and IPO plans.
Written by TFN Research Desk | covering startups, technology, venture capital, and business strategy
Quick Facts
| Founder | Sandeep Aggarwal |
| Education | MBA, Washington University in St. Louis |
| Prior Ventures | Founder, ShopClues (India’s first online managed marketplace); Senior Internet Research Analyst, Collins Stewart |
| Role | Founder and CEO, Droom |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Sector | Used Vehicle Marketplace |
Introduction
Sandeep Aggarwal’s path to founding Droom runs through one of Indian startup history’s most public falls and comebacks. In July 2013, while running his first startup, ShopClues, Aggarwal was arrested by the FBI in the US over insider-trading allegations tied to his earlier career as a Wall Street analyst, forcing him to step down as ShopClues CEO. (The Weekend Leader) Rather than wait out the legal process idly, Aggarwal launched Droom in November 2014, from the very same office where he had started ShopClues three years earlier. (The Weekend Leader) Over a decade later, Droom has grown into one of India’s largest online vehicle marketplaces and is once again preparing for a long-delayed public listing. (IPO Central)
The Droom Story
Before founding either of his startups, Aggarwal worked as a senior internet research analyst at Collins Stewart, covering Microsoft and Yahoo for a San Francisco-based research firm. (Inc42) It was conduct from that earlier Wall Street role, specifically, passing non-public information about a pending Microsoft-Yahoo deal to a hedge fund portfolio manager in 2009, that led to his 2013 arrest, years after he had already moved on to build ShopClues in India. (Inc42) Aggarwal pleaded guilty to related charges and spent roughly six years navigating the US legal process; in February 2020, the Department of Justice dropped its charges, and Aggarwal reached a civil settlement with the SEC, paying a $32,500 penalty. (Business Standard)
Droom itself launched with an ambitious premise: build a full-stack ecosystem around used-vehicle transactions rather than a simple listings site, including Orange Book Value, a proprietary used-vehicle pricing engine, alongside inspection, vehicle-history, and financing tools branded Eco, History, Discovery, and Credit. (Inc42) That ecosystem approach helped Droom become India’s second unicorn founded by the same entrepreneur, with the company claiming an 80% share of India’s online automobile transaction market at its peak. (SuccessYeti)
Droom first filed for an IPO with SEBI in 2021, but the listing was postponed multiple times amid shifting market conditions. (IPO Central) The company has since restructured its approach, raising smaller funding rounds to bridge toward a fresh listing attempt, and notably kept its most recent Indian round deliberately low-valued, a move Aggarwal said was intended to give Indian retail investors upside they’d missed in the company’s earlier growth. (Entrackr)
Business Model
Droom earns revenue through a combination of transaction commissions and value-added services across its vehicle marketplace:
| Revenue Stream | How It Works |
|---|---|
| Marketplace transaction fees | Commissions on used and new vehicle listings and sales |
| Orange Book Value | Licensing of its proprietary vehicle pricing and valuation engine |
| Inspection and history services | Fees for vehicle inspection (Eco) and history reports (History) |
| Financing (Credit) | Facilitation fees on used-auto loans and dealer financing |
(Sourced from Inc42)
Funding and IPO History
| Round/Event | Year | Amount | Key Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Growth rounds | 2015–2020 | Multiple rounds | Lightbox Ventures, Toyota Tsusho, 57 Stars, Beenext |
| Pre-IPO bridge round | 2025 | ₹220 crore (~$26 million) | 57 Stars, Beenext, Lightbox Ventures ($1.7B valuation) |
| India subsidiary round | Mar 2025 | ₹25 crore (~$2.9 million) | Finvolve, IA Growth Opportunities Fund II |
(Sourced from IPO Central and Entrackr)
Overall, Droom has raised approximately $344 million to date. The company is now preparing to re-file its Draft Red Herring Prospectus with SEBI, targeting a ₹3,000-3,200 crore IPO by early 2026 at a valuation between $1.8-2 billion, though a more recent report suggests the company may be recalibrating toward a smaller ₹1,000 crore listing around 2027 at a $1.2-1.5 billion valuation. (IPO Central; BW Disrupt)
Revenue and Growth
| Metric | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹90.0 crore | ₹169.3 crore (up 88.1%) |
(Sourced from Inc42)
Notably, Droom’s near-doubling of revenue in FY25 comes after years of financial strain and multiple IPO postponements, and the company has cited this rebound as a key factor in reigniting its listing plans and engaging investment banks including Kotak Mahindra Capital, Axis Capital, and ICICI Securities. (IPO Central)
Droom vs Competitors
Droom competes with Cars24, CarDekho, Spinny, and CarTrade in India’s online vehicle marketplace. (PitchBook) As one of the earliest full-stack players in the category, Droom differentiated itself through owned tools like Orange Book Value, though newer, better-capitalised rivals have since scaled faster in used-car retail specifically.
Key Takeaways
- Sandeep Aggarwal founded Droom in November 2014, shortly after stepping down as CEO of his first startup, ShopClues, amid an insider-trading case.
- The DOJ dropped all criminal charges against Aggarwal in 2020, and he settled civil charges with the SEC for a $32,500 penalty.
- Droom built a full-stack vehicle marketplace ecosystem, including its proprietary Orange Book Value pricing engine, and has raised approximately $344 million to date.
- FY25 revenue nearly doubled to ₹169.3 crore, helping revive the company’s long-delayed IPO plans after a 2021 filing was repeatedly postponed.
- The company competes with Cars24, CarDekho, Spinny, and CarTrade in India’s online vehicle marketplace.
FAQs
Who founded Droom?
Sandeep Aggarwal founded Droom in November 2014.
Is Droom a public company?
Not yet, though it is preparing to re-file for an IPO after a 2021 attempt was postponed multiple times.
How much funding has Droom raised?
Approximately $344 million to date, most recently through pre-IPO bridge rounds in 2025.
Who are Droom’s competitors?
Cars24, CarDekho, Spinny, and CarTrade in India’s online vehicle marketplace.
© The Founder Nation | Written by TFN Research Desk
