Wolfgang Lehmacher writes:
2023 was not an easy year for logistic technology (LogTech) startups. The year was marked by the default of several high-profile “digital forwarders” that once promised to re-invent logistics.
In December 2023, Instafreight, a Berlin-based leading European digital freight forwarder, announced that the venture was filing for insolvency after having raised EUR 75mn from top-tier investors including Rocket Internet, the European Investment Bank and Shell Ventures. Convoy, a United States (US) startup failed more spectacularly – it had raised USD 1bn and was valued at USD 3.8bn just a year before shutting down the business in October 2023. Startups elsewhere have also struggled – Blackbuck, an Indian trucking platform, sold its European assets to Trukker; and Freightwalla, an early mover in India, shut down in May 2023. Flexport, the best financed of these startups, laid off 20% of its workforce in October last year…
The full post is here.