KAR Global solidified its transition to a digital auction marketplace company  by announcing May 2 it is rebranding as OPENLANE as of May 15.

OPENLANE will serve as both the parent company brand and the go-to-market brand for the company's digital marketplaces in the U.S., Canada and Europe.

Since KAR Global sold off ADESA early last year to Carvana, the change reflects the company's  asset-light, online, and simplified approach to used vehicle remarketing.

A New Digital Centric Auction Strategy

Consolidating platforms, offerings and operations into OPENLANE will help focus the company's strategy and investments, accelerate innovation, and clarify the overall customer experience. The company's corporate name will change to OPENLANE, Inc. effective May 15. The company's common stock will continue trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "KAR."

"We are advancing that vision by bringing together all of our sellers, buyers and vehicles under OPENLANE," said CEO Peter Kelly in a news release. "Over the past decade, we've built and acquired some of the leading digital platforms in our industry. We've combined the best features and functionality from this technology and unified our supporting operations. With flexible sale formats and thousands of cars offered each day — including exclusive, first access to most of North America's off-lease inventory — customers will be able to list, bid and buy anytime, anywhere."

In 2022, the company's marketplaces sold about 1.3 million vehicles, with a gross merchandise value of over $23 billion, across a network of more than 50,000 franchise and independent dealers, OEMs, financial institutions, rental and recovery companies, and fleet operations.

More Digital Auction Marketplaces Ahead

The first OPENLANE branded marketplace will be launched in Canada where the company will combine the existing ADESA and TradeRev platforms beginning in June 2023.

In the U.S., the company integrated CARWAVE into BacklotCars in 2022 and is rolling out the new live-auction format on a national scale. Once completed, the company will focus on integrating its U.S. dealer-to-dealer and off-lease platforms into a new, combined marketplace branded OPENLANE.

In Europe, the company has completed its consolidation of the ADESA Europe, ADESA UK and GWListe dealer-to-dealer technology into a single, consolidated marketplace expected to also adopt the OPENLANE brand.

"KAR catalyzed the digital transformation of remarketing through our acquisition of OPENLANE in 2011," Kelly said. "So it is fitting to anchor the next era of our company — and our industry — on the OPENLANE brand. From CPO-ready off-lease cars to higher-mileage older vehicles, to fleet, rentals, recoveries and everything in between, OPENLANE will have the right car for every lot in every geography. And with thousands of unique users engaging on our marketplaces each day, sellers can receive the most competitive market price available."

The company has launched a new corporate website at corporate.openlane.com. The site contains investor information, additional details on the full portfolio of OPENLANE's product and services, and a new employer brand page highlighting life at OPENLANE and more than 150 current job openings.

The new "wheel and key" OPENLANE logo was designed by the company's in-house marketing team and nods to both the company's automotive heritage and the circle of data, technology and people that will power the future of digital remarketing.

Today's brand announcement does not affect AFC, the company's financing company servicing independent dealers across North America.