E-commerce giant eBay has announced plans to acquire Caramel, a startup that helps car sellers and buyers complete the final steps of the transaction — including verification, financing, paperwork, ownership transfer, insurance, and more.

Founded out of Los Angeles in 2021, Caramel raised an unannounced $20M Series A led by FirstMark in 2024, and formally launched that same year.

The platform can be used to complete sales initiated through independent dealerships or marketplaces, including eBay. At the point of checking out, Caramel is provided as an option to verify the individuals’ identities, handle title transfer and registrations, and transfer funds. Buyers are also able to choose financing options, and arrange delivery of the vehicle.

While eBay already offers some guidance and services to ease online car sales, such as escrow for holding funds, bringing Caramel in-house will enable it to expedite the process by taking care of a huge chunk of the stressful post-sale administration.

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