Exclusive:  Fleequid grabs €3M to launch Europe’s first online marketplace for used buses

The bus resale market is surprisingly expansive, with over 100,000 buses changing hands each year in Europe alone. However, the process has remained slow, fragmented, and offline. Buses usually start in Northern Europe, travel south, and undergo three to four ownership changes during their lifecycle. Countries such as Italy, Poland, Germany, and Spain, which have strong tourism industries and extensive rural areas, rely heavily on these vehicles. Despite the market’s scale, bus buying and selling are still lagging.
Many owners lack knowledge about how and to whom they can sell their buses. As a result, they often turn directly to brokers-middlemen operating within an opaque system rife with hidden fees. This issue is what brothersFilippoandFederico Battagliaaimed to address when they founded Fleequid at the end of 2024. After spending over a decade in their family’s bus trading company, Basco, they recognised a significant opportunity to inject speed and trust into an industry in desperate need of reform.
Today, Fleequid, the first online marketplace built for buying and selling used buses, has raised €3 million in Seed funding. The round was led by Amsterdam-basedDFF Ventures, with participation from other global funds, such as Silence VC,FJ Labs, and angel investor Jack Greco (co-founder of ACV Auctions). The valuation was not disclosed toTFN.
With this new round of funding, Fleequid plans to accelerate its rollout across Europe, further develop its technology, and enable companies to trade buses with the speed of clicking ‘buy now.’ The funding will help the company expand across Europe, grow its team, and improve its auction platform.
Fleequid was established in 2024 by a team with extensive industry and management expertise. The company’s inception stemmed from an idea by Basco Srl, a prominent player in the commercial vehicle industry. Notable figures in Fleequid’s founding and leadership include Federico Battaglia, Filippo Battaglia, and Francesco Rocchi. Federico serves as an executive board member, while Francesco is the General Manager, responsible for international go-to-market strategy, operations, and business development.
Fleequid was created to tackle persistent inefficiencies and a lack of clarity in the commercial vehicle market, specifically in the buying and selling used buses. The founders identified that the industry depended heavily on traditional and often outdated business models.
Their objective was to establish a digital marketplace that would streamline, expedite, and enhance transaction transparency, broaden operators’ opportunities, and promote more efficient interactions across Europe.
Fleequid distinguishes itself in the used bus marketplace through advanced technology, operational excellence, and a customer-centric approach. Fleequid offers a fully digital auction platform where buyers and sellers can transact efficiently. The process is streamlined: users register, browse detailed listings (with extensive photos and technical information), participate in live auctions, and complete online transactions within seven days.
Fleequid replaces backroom deals and long email chains with a single platform where sellers can list their vehicles and buyers can compete in open online auctions. Every bus has a complete dossier: 50+ high-resolution photos, 360-degree videos, condition reports, and technical inspections verified by Fleequid’s expert team. Once a deal is made, Fleequid handles the entire transaction, from payment to ownership transfer and transport, acting as a trusted intermediary and handling all administrative procedures.
The platform features an automatic bidding tool. Users can set a maximum bid, and the system will automatically place incremental bids up to that limit, ensuring they remain competitive without constant manual input. Fleequid’s 3% transaction fee undercuts traditional brokers, who typically charge 8–12%, saving operators thousands of euros per sale.
“We’ve been in this world for 13 years,” said co-founder Filippo Battaglia. “We know the players, the pain points, and how much value is lost in the current system. We built Fleequid to change that. We used to say no to 90% of buses at Basco because we didn’t have a scalable way to resell them. Now, we can say yes to all of them.”
Listings include high-quality photos, videos, and detailed technical documentation produced by Fleequid’s technicians, giving buyers confidence and clarity about their purchase. The platform enables cross-border sales, connecting buyers and sellers from over 20 countries, and aims to complete deals in as little as seven days, much faster than traditional channels.
In its first months, Fleequid sold hundreds of buses. Buyers placed bids from Ghana, Romania, and Iraq to core EU markets such as Italy, Poland, and Bulgaria. The need for a more efficient, trusted solution is global. By extending bus lifespans, Fleequid aligns with EU circular economy goals, potentially diverting 15,000+ buses annually from scrap. Early data shows 60% of Fleequid-sold buses replace older Euro III models in Southern Europe, reducing emissions by 30% per vehicle.
“We look for sharp founders tackling big problems in under-digitised markets,” saidMaarten Engelen, Partner at DFF. “The Battaglia brothers are insiders who’ve decided to disrupt their industry, and they’ve done it with the kind of execution and grit we love to back. Fleequid is not just a better way to trade buses. It starts a new operating system for the entire sector.”