MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -

Another one of the inaugural Emerging 8 honorees is continuing to gain industry traction.

Last week, BMW i Ventures announced an investment in AutoFi, a technology company honored during last year’s Automotive Intelligence Summit. The exact funding figure wasn’t revealed in a news release distributed by BMW’s multi-billion euro venture capital fund that invests in startups in the fields of autonomous driving, digital car and automotive cloud, e-mobility, artificial Intelligence and data, and more.

Headquartered in San Francisco, AutoFi is a retail platform that can allow car buyers to purchase and finance a vehicle from a variety of financial institutions within or outside the dealership. Thanks to AutoFi’s deep integrations with financial institutions, the customers can submit simple credit applications to a number of key finance companies, including Chase and Santander, and get instant decisions, which in return can increase engagement, conversion and F&I penetration.

“The AutoFi team has built a cutting-edge solution providing transparency through connecting key stakeholders in the auto financing industry: financial institutions, dealers and consumers,” said Baris Guzel of BMW i Ventures. “We are convinced that AutoFi has the potential to be the industry standard checkout for all automotive transactions, and we are thrilled to join the journey.”

AutoFi indicated it will use the investment to expand its sales and customer support, and continue its rapid pace of product innovation.

“We are excited to partner with BMW i Ventures to lead our Series B financing,” said Kevin Singerman, chief executive officer and co-founder at AutoFi. “They set themselves apart as an investor that deeply understands the automotive ecosystem. We share the belief that the industry tailwinds of digitization and transparency create amazing consumer experiences, as well as profitable businesses for manufacturers and dealers.

“We look forward to working with them to help support and grow our expanding network of dealers, lenders, and OEMs,” Singerman went on to say.

The next cohort of Emerging 8 honorees will be in the spotlight during the Automotive Intelligence Summit, which runs from April 14-16 in Raleigh, N.C.

Last year, over 230 leaders in the auto industry gathered to discuss the latest info on AIS core topics, compliance regulations, connectivity, mobility, digital retail, predictive analytics, investing + M&A, fintech solutions and economic forecast.

Digital retailing and the latest in fintech were the overarching themes of our 2019 event, and will once again be front and center in 2020.

Early bird registration discounts are available through March 1. Complete details can be found at www.autointelsummit.com.