Shadowfax raises $100 million in latest funding led by TPG New Quest

Hyperlocal logistics startup Shadowfax has raised $100 million in a mix of primary and secondary investments as part of its latest funding round led by growth investor TPG NewQuest.

Existing investors including Mirae Asset Management, Flipkart, International Finance Corporation, Nokia Growth Partners, Qualcomm, and Trifecta Capital also participated in the fundraise. The round also includes an element of venture debt.

Shadowfax’s latest round comprises a primary raise of $50 million, with the secondary portion and venture debt standing at $30 million and $20 million respectively, cofounder and chief executive Abhishek Bansal told ET.

Early backer Eight Roads Ventures, which first invested in the company in 2015, has made a partial exit as part of the transaction.

The company said it will utilise the proceeds to extend its last-mile delivery services to cover 20,000 pincodes across India.

Part of the raised funds will be used to develop value-added services for direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands and further enhance Shadowfax’s express deliver network, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

ET had first reported on September 5, 2022 that the startup was in talks to raise $75-$100 million in a mix of primary and secondary capital, with Eight Roads expected to see a partial exit.

“We have been running profitably and will look to build newer solutions with the capital. Customers are looking at speed-oriented solutions today and 4–5 day commerce will not survive. As we look to build next-generation speed solutions for brands, we may look at inorganic ways of growth,” said Bansal.

Founded in 2015 by IIT Delhi alumni Bansal, Vaibhav Khandelwal, Praharsh Chandra, and Gaurav Jaithliya, Shadowfax has transitioned to serving e-commerce clientele such as Meesho, from initially being an on-demand logistics provider for food-delivery platforms.

The platform claims to be delivering 2 million packages daily, through its network of 125,000 monthly active delivery partners.

“We have been impressed with the tech stack they (Shadowfax) have built. This helps with the delivery of superior service metrics and allows them to quickly adapt their services to client’s changing needs at the lowest price,” said Amit Gupta, partner and head of India and Southeast Asia, TPG NewQuest.

Shadowfax’s claims to have clocked three consecutive quarters of EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) profitability in the current financial year from April to December 2023.

The company is looking to close FY24 as its first full financial year of positive EBITDA (after accounting for ESOP costs).