Lalamove close to raising $1.5b in new round, report says

The Hong Kong-based company raised US$1.3 billion as part of the first two tranches of its series F funding round led by Hillhouse Capital, the report said, citing local media outlet 36Kr. The logistics firm is also reportedly looking to raise another US$200 million to close out the round.

Lalamove offers last-mile delivery services to small and medium-sized enterprises across multiple industries, including catering, retail, ecommerce, manufacturing, and construction. Brick-and-mortar shops such as independent bookstores and clothing boutiques can also use its multistop delivery feature to fulfill local orders.

“The market will further expand and penetrate into fourth and fifth-tier cities, and we believe that the transformation of China’s freight industry by mobile internet is far from being over,” said founder Zhou Shengfu.

The latest round comes after the company raised US$515 million in series E funding from a round led by Sequoia Capital China.

As of the end of November 2020, Lalamove said it covers 352 mainland Chinese cities, with 480,000 monthly active drivers and 7.2 million monthly active users on the platform.

In October 2020, Lalamove also launched its services in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in the US, without imposing a revenue share model, which means local restaurants can charge delivery fees to their customers without having to pay for commission.