Kovi

Overview

Kovi turned car rental into working-capital infrastructure for Latin American ride-hailing drivers. Founded in 2018 by former 99 executives Adhemar Milani Neto and João Costa, it combined flexible rentals, maintenance, insurance, payments, and telematics for people whom banks and traditional rental desks often rejected.^[1]

The company did not fail. Its 2025 all-share sale to Moove showed what Kovi had become: a regional underwriting and fleet-operations system whose value lay as much in its driver data and operational network as in its cars. The acquisition also exposed the constraint beneath the success. A capital-hungry mobility business gains purchasing power, financing access, and geographic reach through consolidation faster than it can build them alone.

Founding Story

Milani and Costa met at 99, the Brazilian ride-hailing company acquired by Didi. Milani had worked at Bosch, International Paper, Bain, and 99; Costa had led product at 99. Their vantage point was unusually useful. They could see demand for rides from inside the platform, but also the supply bottleneck outside it: many prospective drivers could not finance or rent an eligible car on workable terms.

They left 99 in July 2018 and assembled Kovi in roughly three to four months. Milani told Exame, “Criamos a Kovi com o intuito de auxiliar o motorista a conseguir seu carro e ajudá-lo do começo ao fim do processo” — they created Kovi to help drivers get a car and support them from beginning to end.^[2] Costa set a deliberately modest first operating target: “Esperamos fechar o ano com algumas centenas de carros alugados como piloto.” The early product was therefore not a broad consumer subscription. It was an employment-enabling bundle for app drivers.

Kovi entered Y Combinator's Winter 2019 batch and raised a $30 million Series A that November. Global Founders Capital led; Quona, Monashees, Maya, YC, and others participated. The round took total funding to $40.6 million.^[3]

The founders chose an asset-light structure. Kovi rented cars from automakers and leasing companies, then placed them with drivers while operating the software, service, collections, and risk layer. Milani later said, “Na prática, não compramos os carros, alugamos da montadora ou de outras empresas de leasing e realugamos o veículo.”^[4] The structure reduced upfront ownership, but it did not remove capital intensity. Fleet commitments, repairs, delinquency, utilization, and replacement cars still had to be financed and managed.

Timeline

• July–November 2018: Milani and Costa leave 99, build Kovi, and begin a São Paulo pilot.^[2]
• Winter 2019: Kovi joins Y Combinator.^[1]
• November 2019: A $30 million Series A brings total funding to $40.6 million.^[3]
• December 2019: Kovi launches in Mexico City with 100 cars.^[5]
• February 2020: The company reports 6,000 drivers across São Paulo, Porto Alegre, and Mexico City.^[5]
• August 2021: Kovi raises a $104 million Series B and a $20 million debt facility.^[6]
• January 2025: Moove announces an all-share acquisition; Kovi keeps its brand and management.^[7]
• 2026: Kovi says it operates in 12 Brazilian cities and Mexico with more than 1,400 employees.^[8]

What They Built

Kovi packaged the fixed assets and administrative work required to earn money on Uber, 99, and similar platforms. A driver chose a vehicle and plan, submitted a permanent driver's license and proof of address, paid a deposit and first installment, then collected a prepared car. Maintenance, protection, vehicle documents, and a replacement car were included on current Brazilian plans.^[9]

The wedge was underwriting. Traditional lenders rejected many drivers, and several rental plans depended on a credit card. Kovi accepted applicants with negative credit records without a conventional credit check. It managed the resulting risk with recurring payments, telematics, operational contact, and the ability to control vehicles remotely. Current driver terms say a car can be blocked automatically after 48 hours of payment delay.^[10]