Singapore mobility startup Swat secures $10.1m to expand overseas

Singapore-based smart mobility startup Ministry of Movement has closed a US$10.1 million series A funding round led by The University of Tokyo Edge Capital 4 Limited Partnership to grow and expand overseas.

New investors SMRT Momentum Ventures, ComfortDelGro Ventures, Singapore Economic Development Board’s New Ventures, EDBI, and LKJ Capital Japan also participated in the round, alongside existing investors iGlobe Platinum Fund II and the Goldbell Group family office.

The Swat team / Photo credit: Ministry of Movement

Ministry of Movement is the entity behind Swat, an on-demand transport startup. According to a statement, Swat is different from the ride-hailing services that most people are familiar with, as it focuses on high-capacity vehicles and aims to improve connectivity and reduce traffic congestion.

“We see a need for such shared transport, especially in areas where the transport system has not caught up with rapid urbanization and have high population density,” said Swat co-founder and CEO Jarrold Ong.

The company currently provides employee transportation services for large corporations and industrial parks. It said that for one of its clients, it moves about 1,600 employees from close to their home and drops them off directly to their offices.

With the new funds, Swat said it will launch projects in Japan, China, the Philippines, and Indonesia by the first half of next year. The investment will also allow the company to expand to new business verticals and support the growth of its commercial operations by bolstering its tech, data, and engineering teams.

Founded in 2015, Swat currently has operations in Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Australia, where it operates an on-demand public bus service. It also conducted on-demand bus trials with Singapore’s Land Transport Authority earlier this year.