Australian commerce and logistics technology company Shippit has raised A$30 million ($22 million) in Series B funding that the firm will use to finance its Southeast Asia expansion, among others.
The funding round was backed by US-based technology investment firm Tiger Global along with the investor’s local representative Jason Lenga, according to the announcement.
Shippit, which launched in Singapore last July to serve as its regional headquarter, providers fulfillment technology to retailers such as Sephora, Big W, Target, and Tempe & Webster. Its platform allows retailers to choose who delivers their order and how it is delivered.
The company said it currently handles five million deliveries in a month in Australia alone and is growing significantly both in Australia and in Southeast Asia.
“Scalable logistics is one of the fundamental enablers for ecommerce in the APAC region and this capital raise will enable us to advance our core business of providing the technology retailers need to grow,” said Shippit’s founding CEO William On.
The fresh capital will be used to support the company’s expansion in Southeast Asia, finance its product and technology enhancements, and grow its team with key hires.
Tiger Global partner John Curtius said the fund was impressed with the business fundamentals and rapid growth that Shippit had demonstrated.
In 2017, Shippit bagged $1.63 million in a Series A funding round led by venture fund Aura Group and other participants including Addventure Fund and RTL Group Investments.
Shippit’s fundraising and planned Southeast Asia expansion come as the region’s logistics technology space continues to witness investor interest despite the global pandemic.
In June, for instance, Indonesian logistics tech platform Shipper raised Series A funding led by global internet group Prosus Ventures to expand its business in Indonesia. It then announced in October its acquisition of warehousing solutions firm Pakde and local delivery startup Porter.
Indonesia’s logistics market is projected to hit $240 billion by 2021, roughly the same size as India’s $215 billion.
Last April, Southeast Asian third-party logistics player Inteluck has raised $5 million in a pre-Series B found of financing by Hong Kong-based venture capital firm MindWorks Capital.