News / Feeder line SPIL and PE fund Gobi invest in Indonesian logistics operator

Credit Deliveree.

Continuing the trend of container shipping companies investing in logistics businesses, Indonesian feeder operator PT Salam Pacific Indonesia Lines (SPIL) and private equity player Gobi Ventures have invested $70m in compatriot logistics company Deliveree.

The funds were invested in a Series C round that is usually a start-up’s final phase of venture capital financing. With this latest tranche, Deliveree, which operates in Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines (under the brand Transportify) has raised $109m in the past five years

While Deliveree has yet to turn a profit since its establishment in 2015, the investors hope that the unprecedented surge in logistics demand in South-east Asia will turn the situation around.

Co-founded by CEO Tom Kim, Deliveree, has 500 employees and more than 25,000 customers and said its gross transaction value had tripled in the past two years and will exceed $100m this year.

The company, primarily a trucking provider, said the $70m raised from SPIL and Gobi would be used to expand services, particularly in delivering containers, and build market share in South-east Asia.

SPIL VP Widarta Liunanda said, “We’re able to provide Deliveree with strong supply chain operational capabilities by aligning land and sea modes of transport. This will enable Deliveree’s tech platform to offer broader logistics solutions that extend beyond inland trucking with an inter-island reach that is strategically supported by the SPIL network of containerships servicing all major ports in Indonesia.”

Kay Mok, managing partner of Gobi Partners, said, “Post-pandemic, we are moving into an inflationary environment plagued by supply chain issues. Deliveree has built the best tech platform and this will enable them to optimise and lower the total cost of operations.”

Liner operators have been investing in 3PL companies to enhance vertical integration, amid the red-hot container shipping market. In December, MSC, Maersk and CMA CGM, the world’s three largest liner operators, acquired Brazilian logistics company Log-in Logistica, Hong Kong-based LF Logistics and US logistics company Ingram Micro CLS, respectively.

In March, MSC acquired Bolloré Logistics’ African ports division for $6.2bn, and MOL, part of ONE, acquired former logistics affiliate Utoc Corp.