Travel eSIM provider Airalo raises $220 million

International provider now has unicorn status

International travel eSIM provider Airalo has raised $220 million in funding, led by CVC, which contributed $185 million.

The new capital puts Airalo’s valuation higher than $1 billion, with the company claiming unicorn status.

Airalo said the funding will be used to improve customer experience, provide better support, work on new products and provide better value.

Ahmet Bahadir Ozdemir, CEO and co-founder of Airalo, called the funding a “major milestone” both for Airalo and for “the future of global connectivity.”

Currently, Arialo serves more than 20 million travellers in more than 200 destinations.

“This raise allows us to drive innovation across every part of the user journey by delivering more flexible plans and a faster, more seamless experience,” he said.

“We’re not just enabling better eSIM solutions for travel - we’re building the infrastructure for the next generation of international mobile connectivity.”

Starting this month, Airalo will offer eSIM bundles, ranging from one-GB plans to 30-day unlimited data bundles, and plans to introduce data, text and voice packages in select destinations.

Additionally, the company is introducing a new in-app experience for the web, iOS and Android and scaling its enterprise platform for businesses and partners.

“We are thrilled to partner with Airalo - the clear category leader in travel eSIMs and a pioneer in redefining how travellers connect worldwide,” said Siddharth Patel, managing partner at CVC.

“The digital travel eSIM market, whilst already worth $1 billion, is at the very early stages of becoming the main method by which consumers can receive the highest quality experience abroad, at a much lower price than they pay for roaming today.”