Logistics Tech Startup Blackbuck Raises $27.4 Mn from Sequoia Capital, Others

Bengaluru-based tech-enabled logistics startup BlackBuck has raised ₹202 crores (~ US$27.3 million) in a fresh funding round from Sequoia Capital, which will be joining the startup as new investor, according to the regulatory filings. Existing investors Accel Partners and Sands Capital also participated in the round.

Sequoia’s SCI Investment fund has invested more than ₹100 crores in Blackbuck, while the rest comes Accel and Sands Capital. So far, the startup has raised a total of about $135 million in funding over five rounds including this one.

The funding comes soon after Sequoia Capital closed its sixth India focused fund at $695 million, in August 2018.

Founded in 2015, by IIT Kharagpur alumni - Chanakya Hridaya, Rajesh Yabaji and Ramasubramaniam B, BlackBuck is one of the best funded online freight startups in India. The startup has built a B2B online marketplace platform for freight where shippers and the fleet operators can engage seamlessly.

To recall, in December 2016 all three BackBuck co-founders had made strategic investment in Comet, a Mumbai-based online marketplace for international freight services.

Beside Accel, Sands Capital and now Sequoia, the other prominent investors that have invested in Blackbuck include Flipkart, IFC of World Bank, Tiger Global and Russian billionaire Yuri Milner-backed fund Apoletto Asia.

In the last two years, Blackbuck has seen fast growth with revenue growing seven-fold in FY'17 to Rs 566 crore however the losses also grew more than five times to Rs 86 crore. The startup had also reached operational profitability in that financial year. The company has not filed its financials for FY'18 so far.

“Macroeconomic factors like GST and their downstream effect into the logistics industry would affect the ecosystem in FY18 and company expects to be in a strong position to take advantage of the same,” Zinka Logistics, as the company is registered, had said in its MCA filing for FY'17.

Other prominent players in freight logistics include Locus, Locanix, ElasticRun, 4tigo Network Logistics, among others.

Earlier this month, Gurgaon-based GoBOLT, a tech-logistics company operating in line haul & short haul trucking, has secured funding of ₹40 crore from Aavishkaar Bharat Fund.

Late last month, one of India's largest third-party logistics (3PL) solution providers, Mahindra Logistics (MLL) had acquired a strategic stake in Transtech Logistics, also known as ShipX. The acquisition deal was done at Rs.7 Crores


Source - Economic Times

Logistics Tech Startup Blackbuck Raises $27.4 Mn from Sequoia Capital, Others

Bengaluru-based tech-enabled logistics startup BlackBuck has raised ₹202 crores (~ US$27.3 million) in a fresh funding round from Sequoia Capital, which will be joining the startup as new investor, according to the regulatory filings. Existing investors Accel Partners and Sands Capital also participated in the round.

Sequoia’s SCI Investment fund has invested more than ₹100 crores in Blackbuck, while the rest comes Accel and Sands Capital. So far, the startup has raised a total of about $135 million in funding over five rounds including this one.

The funding comes soon after Sequoia Capital closed its sixth India focused fund at $695 million, in August 2018.

Founded in 2015, by IIT Kharagpur alumni - Chanakya Hridaya, Rajesh Yabaji and Ramasubramaniam B, BlackBuck is one of the best funded online freight startups in India. The startup has built a B2B online marketplace platform for freight where shippers and the fleet operators can engage seamlessly.

To recall, in December 2016 all three BackBuck co-founders had made strategic investment in Comet, a Mumbai-based online marketplace for international freight services.

Beside Accel, Sands Capital and now Sequoia, the other prominent investors that have invested in Blackbuck include Flipkart, IFC of World Bank, Tiger Global and Russian billionaire Yuri Milner-backed fund Apoletto Asia.

In the last two years, Blackbuck has seen fast growth with revenue growing seven-fold in FY'17 to Rs 566 crore however the losses also grew more than five times to Rs 86 crore. The startup had also reached operational profitability in that financial year. The company has not filed its financials for FY'18 so far.

“Macroeconomic factors like GST and their downstream effect into the logistics industry would affect the ecosystem in FY18 and company expects to be in a strong position to take advantage of the same,” Zinka Logistics, as the company is registered, had said in its MCA filing for FY'17.

Other prominent players in freight logistics include Locus, Locanix, ElasticRun, 4tigo Network Logistics, among others.

Earlier this month, Gurgaon-based GoBOLT, a tech-logistics company operating in line haul & short haul trucking, has secured funding of ₹40 crore from Aavishkaar Bharat Fund.

Late last month, one of India's largest third-party logistics (3PL) solution providers, Mahindra Logistics (MLL) had acquired a strategic stake in Transtech Logistics, also known as ShipX. The acquisition deal was done at Rs.7 Crores


Source - Economic Times

E-commerce Logistics Firm Ecom Express Bags Rs 192 Cr From Warburg Pincus

A leading end-to-end e-commerce logistics solutions provider, Ecom Express has raised Rs 192 crore from existing investor Warburg Pincus, reports Ettech. Earlier in 2015, Warburg Pincus has invested Rs 850 crore in Ecom Express.

According to the documents with the registrar of companies (ROC) as per Tofler, the investment was made through the private equity firm's unit Eaglebay Investment. The RoC documents show that a 'Supplemental Agreement' was made on September 8 in which 609,524 compulsorily convertible preference shares (Series III CCPS) were issued and allotted by way of preferential allotment to Eaglebay Investment at Rs 3,150 per Series III CCPS for an aggregate subscription amount of Rs 192,00,00,600.

Founded in 2012 by T A Krishnan, Manju Dhawan, K Satyanarayana and Sanjeev Saxena, Ecom Express has brought to the marketplace unique and innovative practices. One of them being the full-state coverage programme which was initiated in the year 2016 with the objective of opening doors for e-commerce in remote and rural locations of India while offering rural consumers with greater opportunities emerging out of an e-commerce proposition. This expansion follows the earlier full-state coverage in Delhi, Haryana, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, which was completed last year.

Earlier in March 2017, Ecom Express has announced a major round of expansion by adding over 6000 more Pin Codes in its services and strengthening reach in the entire states of Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Bihar and West Bengal as part of its full-state coverage programme.

Ecom Express takes the total pin code coverage to more than 17000 entrenching its leadership position in the e-commerce logistics industry in terms of reach.

Whereas, Warburg Pincus has been an active investor in the logistics space in the country in recent years. According to the Ettech report, the firm has invested $75 million (Rs 500 crore) in Gurgaon-based logistics services provider Rivigo last year for a minority stake. The PE firm is also an investor in third-party logistics company Stellar Value Chain.