World Bank’s investment arm IFC may put $10 million in BlackBuck

BENGALURU: World Bank’s investment arm International Finance Corporation (IFC) is evaluating an investment of $10 million for a minority stake in Zinka Logistics, which owns the long-haul trucking company BlackBuck. The investment is part of the new funding round of the Bengaluru-based company.
The capital will be deployed by the technology-enabled trucking platform to expand the company’s service offerings and technology development. The round will also see participation from existing investors Tiger Global, Accel Partners, Apoletto and the logistics unit of online retailer Flipkart.

Close to 28,000 truck owners registered on BlackBuck, use the platform’s technology to improve utilisation of the fleet reducing the instance of travelling empty or partially full. The platform allows transporters to locate, price and transport freight efficiently in a largely unorganised market.

The long-haul full-truck-load (FTL) trucking market in India is currently estimated to be a $70-billion opportunity. Trucks in India have 33% utilisation on an average, indicating that the fleet is usually sitting idle or is partially filled. BlackBuck connects companies, brands and manufacturers to the truck owners and truckers using their platform and has a fleet of 80,000 vehicles on its platform.