CarsDirect Raises $280 Million in Financing

CarsDirect.com, the Los Angeles-based online car retailer, said that it has raised $280 million in private financing. The company also named Robert N. Brisco, formerly president of Universal Studios Hollywood, its new chief executive. All of CarsDirect.com's original investors contributed to the latest round of financing, making it one of the largest private placements ever raised by an Internet start-up. Additional investors include Oracle, Liberty Digital, Soros Private Equity Partners, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Hambrecht & Quist and TMCT Ventures, a fund recently formed by the Los Angeles Times' parent company Times Mirror Co. and the Chandler Trusts.

CarsDirect.com said it will use the money to expand its nationwide network of car dealer partners and to enhance customer service. With Brisco's appointment, CarsDirect.com founder and Chief Executive Scott Painter will become vice chairman of the company. Brisco, who joined Universal Studios Hollywood a year ago, is a former vice president of advertising, marketing and new business development for the Los Angeles Times.