UAE’s Trukker raises $1.4 mln in Saudi-led seed funding round

UAE-based truck aggregator start-up Trukker has raised $1.4 million in a seed funding round led by Saudi-based venture capital firms Raed Ventures and Riyad Taqnia Fund.

The other participants included 500 Startups, Averroes Ventures and Egypt’s Arzan VC, the company said in a statement.

The start-up is working on multiple opportunities and aggressively hiring for its operations in Saudi Arabia, founder and CEO Gaurav Biswas said.

Trukker operates an on-demand truck aggregator network with a focus on connecting smaller operators with shipping firms. It said in the statement that it has seen "2,000 percent growth" in its first year of operations.

“The trucking industry has remained traditional for a very long time, relying on brokers to connect trucking companies and shippers, an uneven process, which is ready for technology-based transformation,” Biswas said.

“Our services and products are designed to fill the gap between what the industry requires from an organized transportation company and what services are received from the unorganized small and individual owner-drivers,” he added.

Trukker, which serves more than 100 companies in the UAE, also provides cross-border service to Saudi Arabia and Oman.