HSBC Malaysia offers its first $15 M in asset-backed financing to support Carsome’s expansion

Carsome Certified Sdn Bhd recently received $15 million from HSBC Malaysia, the company’s first asset-based lending (ABL) facility, to finance the purchase of reconditioned cars that will be sold to retail consumers, the bank announced on Wednesday.

This funding from HSBC will be crucial to enhancing Carsome Certified’s expansion operations in Malaysia, according to a statement from HSBC Malaysia.

In Klang, Southeast Asia’s largest state-of-the-art car refurbishment facility, Carsome Certified, an operating entity of the Carsome group, refurbishes up to 2,000 cars per month, setting a new benchmark for the used car industry.

With a revolving or term basis, HSBC’s ABL is a financing facility designed to satisfy the needs of businesses based on the value of one or more of the following assets: inventory and receivables.

The funding is drawn from the asset-generating business and is updated on a regular basis to reflect the growth of the business’s assets. Additionally, ABL has a flexible loan to value (LTV) linked to each asset funded.

“The used car ecosystem is a robust one with multiple touchpoints in the used car ownership journey including buying, selling, media, refurbishment, and financing – and we see the potential in each of these stages,

“As Southeast Asia’s largest integrated car e-commerce platform, we are delighted to partner with HSBC Malaysia,” said Eric Cheng, Co-founder, Chairman and Group Chief Executive Officer of Carsome.

He claims that cheaper options are becoming more and more popular, and this funding will help the company grow its Carsome Certified business, which will eventually make car ownership more accessible for Malaysians.

With a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.65 percent from 2025 to 2030, the South-East Asian used car market is projected to reach $96.12 billion by 2030, according to an industry report, said Christina Cheah, Head of Global Corporates and International Mid-Markets at HSBC Malaysia.

The region’s used car market, in her opinion, is full of opportunities because it makes car ownership affordable, particularly for first-time or lower-income Malaysians.

“Owning a car allows for better job mobility and productivity while also slowing down the rate of cars getting scrapped or abandoned thus reducing automotive waste,

“HSBC has always been at the forefront of supporting and facilitating the growth of tech-based businesses like Carsome Certified with our suite of financial solutions that are pivotal to the new economy,” she noted.

Additionally, the bank developed a financing solution for Carsome Certified that gives them flexible funding and increased liquidity to grow, eventually giving Malaysians access to more reasonably priced reconditioned cars.

“The ABL financing will be tied to the cash flow generating assets where drawdowns are tied to performance metrics of the financials and in live monitoring of Carsome’s vehicle fleet,” she added.