news 2021-04-22 07:01 ET - News Release
- With Allianz Support, PowerBand Positioned To Engage With Financial Partners for Electric-Vehicle ("EV") Warehouse Leasing Facilities
- PowerBand and Its DRIVRZ™ Virtual Marketplace Aim To Be Global Leader in EV Insurance, Leasing and Real-Time Disposal of Trade-Ins for Consumer and Automotive Dealers
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 22, 2021 / Allianz Partners ("Allianz"), the global insurance and services provider, has agreed to pursue, with Powerband ("PowerBand", "PBX" or the "Company")(TSXV:PBX), access to necessary lines of credit to accelerate PowerBand's North American electrical vehicle leasing strategy through DRIVRZ™.
With Allianz and other financial lending partners, PowerBand is advancing its strategy to make DRIVRZ™ a leader in the delivery of EV insurance and leasing options in the United States and Canada, with a global focus thereafter. Allianz insurance products are already being offered and sold through the DRIVRZ™ virtual platform.
Allianz's support will facilitate PowerBand's strategy to access warehouse lease facilities with our financial lending partners, in addition to the lease lines currently being offered by PowerBand's lending partners, on our virtual leasing platform, Drivrz Financial, that was originally designed for Tesla.
Warehouse lease lines may be renewed many times a year, as the lease portfolio is filled and securitized. It is expected that EV lease demand will increase year over year with Allianz as our partner will assist in the execution of PowerBand's EV strategy over the next five years.
"Global EV sales are expected to reach billions in global sales over the next five years, which offers enormous opportunities in insurance, leasing and the trading in or auctioning of used vehicles including used EVs," said PowerBand CEO Kelly Jennings. "We have a functioning virtual marketplace that can do that now and we intend to make DRIVRZ™ the go-to platform for all consumers but especially for EV drivers and EV automotive dealers."
DRIVRZ™ also offers users the ability to easily auction off used EVs, as well as combustion engine vehicles, on the DRIVRZ™ auction platform, DrivrzXchange. That virtual auction marketplace is now being piloted in northwest Arkansas and is set for expansion this summer. DRIVRZ™ will also offer easy access to insurance products, led by PowerBand's investor and partner D&P Holdings ("D&P").
Added Jennings: "I want to thank Allianz for their financial support and look forward to a long-term lucrative partnership with both them and D&P Holdings. It is our plan to transact a high-volume of EV leases on DRIVRZ™ with our proven track record as a digital solution for leasing Teslas - and a platform that can deliver approvals in as little as eight seconds - to achieve our goal of making PowerBand a leader in the EV leasing and EV insurance space."
DRIVRZ™ is a virtual marketplace that allows drivers and automotive dealers to buy, lease, sell, trade and insure electric and non-electric vehicles from any digital device, from any location. Through its partnerships, the DRIVRZ™ platform offers access to more than 4.5 million vehicles, as outlined in our previous Oct. 21 news release, as well as tens of millions of consumers and thousands of automotive dealer users.
Allianz, PowerBand and the Company's partner, D&P, are cooperating on offering automotive specialty insurance and related products to dealers and drivers, with a focus on EV, passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, trucks and motorbikes. Products include OEM direct and indirect commercial and consumer lending and leasing; consumer-to-consumer vehicle transactions; dealership business; auctions; importer business; and other opportunities with our non-OEM business partners.
Under the lease-line agreement, PowerBand and its exclusive F&I partner, D&P (dba Auto Trac System), EV leases will be continuously available using DRIVRZ™, providing EV lease approvals quickly and efficiently, including Allianz insurance products.
"This partnership with Allianz positions DRIVRZ™ to realize its goal of becoming a North American digital marketplace for electric and non-electric vehicles, meeting the increasing demand for EV insurance products to consumers and automotive dealers," said D&P Holdings CEO John Armstrong.
PowerBand and Allianz - a global leader in B2B2C assistance and insurance solutions - will initially focus on the North American EV market. Subsequently they will expand as DRIVRZ™ becomes available in other countries, with Europe, Australian and Asia chief target markets. DRIVRZ™ will meet the growing demand of consumers wishing to be able to buy cars from their living room, or any location, including inside dealerships, with a smart phone or other digital device.
For further information, please contact:
Kelly Jennings
Chief Executive Officer
E: info@powerbandsolutions.com
P: 866-768-7653