Shadowfax receives $22 m in Series C funding

Shadowfax, India’s leader in the online-2-offline (O2O) logistics segment, on Wednesday, said it has closed $ 22 million (Rs. 150 crore) Series C funding led by NGP Capital.

Qualcomm Ventures (the investment arm of Qualcomm Incorporated), Mirae Asset and existing investor, Eight Roads Ventures, also joined the oversubscribed equity round.

Shadowfax survived the O2O logistics industry’s chaotic infancy period to emerge as the winner amongst India’s hyper-local delivery start-ups. The company’s futuristic platform makes delivery seamless for diverse categories of products like grocery, food, fashion and electronics, said Abhishek Bansal, CEO, in a statement.

Shadowfax currently fulfils 90,000 orders per day. It has multiplied its capabilities three-times in the last 16 months alone and is projecting 150% year-on-year growth for the next five years. The company will use the funds for a concentrated 360-degree scale-up and by the year 2021 it aims to connect 4 lakh new businesses and Delivery Partners to its platform, up from the current 40,000 connections.

NGP Capital Partner Upal Basu said his firm has been investing in the sector globally. The rise in Indian consumers’ expectations for door-step deliveries at a time of their convenience has created a critical need for a national last-mile, independent logistics provider that can serve the needs of these demanding consumers and diverse suppliers at scale.

Shadowfax, founded in Bengaluru in 2015 by two IIT-Delhi alumni, had previously raised funds amounting to US$ 18.5 million from Eight Roads Ventures. It has successfully outrun its competitors with its unique Frodotechnology, an AI-based location stream processing engine which enables high frequency decision-making which, in turn, drives cost optimization and enables the highest service levels in the industry.

Currently present in 80-plus cities across India, the company plans to increase coverage to 100-plus locations in the next three months. Its logistics gateway for businesses, operating on a plug-and-play format, offers an on-demand delivery service platform to its clients. The technology enables customers to make fast, safe and reliable deliveries by instantly connecting them (businesses/e-tailers/retailers) with the company’s network of 30,000-plus Delivery Partners across India.

The company services clients like Dominos, Big Basket, Amazon, PayTM, Flipkart, Myntra, McDonald’s, 1MG, and others, including smaller restaurants, merchants and retailers.