BeOnd (B4, Malé) has launched a USD25 million series A round capital raising to grow the startup's workforce, scale up sales and marketing efforts, and secure more capacity. This follows the niche Maldivian carrier successfully closing a USD13 million pre-series A funding round recently and an earlier USD17 million seed round that was oversubscribed.
"Our pre-series A round was very successful, and we expect even more interest for our series A funding round," said BeOnd's Chairman and CEO Tero Taskila. "Our goal is to reach 32 state-of-the-art and luxurious aircraft within five years. BeOnd will operate a premium leisure experience for customers while bringing to bear the benefits of a lightweight, low-cost operation."
BeOnd launched its first revenue service between Munich and Malé in November using its single specially configured A319-100 that carries just 44 passengers. The self-style premium carrier now operates scheduled Malé - Riyadh - Munich - Riyadh - Malé, and Malé - Riyadh - Zurich - Riyadh - Malé rotations with the aircraft. Earlier this month, the airline said it intended to start flights to Dubai World Central and Milan Malpensa at the end of March 2024. In the lead-up to its launch, BeOnd had positioned itself as an alternative to established operators on the Europe - Maldives sector by saying it intended to offer nonstop flights to Malé from Europe.
Nonetheless, Taskila said BeOnd has been pleased with the customer response to the first flights. He says investor response to the first two funding rounds suggests extensive support for the carrier's "ground-breaking approach to leisure travel and promising market potential." He added that as BeOnd inducts additional aircraft, the airline will continue to roll out new destinations, including to the Asia Pacific region. A BeOnd spokesman was unable to disclose details of the carrier's next aircraft or 2024 delivery timelines.
