Shadowfax speeds ahead with $100M funding as instant delivery boom fuels growth

Shadowfax, one of the largest logistics service providers to hyper-local and on-demand delivery businesses in India, has raised $100 million in a new funding round as it clocks an yearly growth of over 35%.

TPG NewQuest led Shadowfax’s Series E financing round, which includes some secondary transactions, the startup said on Tuesday. TechCrunch reported last year that TPG NewQuest was evaluating an investment in Shadowfax.

Existing backers including the e-commerce giant Flipkart, Mirae Asset Venture Investments, IFC, Nokia Growth Partners, Qualcomm, Eight Roads Ventures and Trifecta Capital also participated in the new funding, the startup said.

“As a third-party logistics organization, we have gained market share tremendously over the last 24 months. And we have done so while remaining profitable,” Abhishek Bansal, co-founder and chief executive of Shadowfax, told TechCrunch in an interview.

Shadowfax operates a logistics and delivery network of over 125,000 monthly active delivery personnels, and works with numerous firms including Flipkart, Meesho and many direct-to-consumer brands. The startup hasn’t lost one customer in five years, Bansal said.

Bansal attributed the growth to the wider adoption of quick commerce in India, which he said has helped the startup grow at a 35% rate. “We have a hyper-local arm as well and that has a huge exposure to quick-commerce firms. We are working with all quick-commerce firms, and any brand that needs to deliver the same day or the day after,” he added.

Founded in 2015, Shadowfax has raised more than $220 million in primary and secondary transactions. The startup’s network today reaches over 2,500 cities and more than 15,000 zip codes. Shadowfax says it makes over 2 million packages delivery each day and has amassed over 3.5 million registered users.

In a statement, Amit Gupta, Partner and Head of India and Southeast Asia at TPG NewQuest, said Shadowfax is “revolutionizing” the e-commerce logistics sector in India. He added: “We have been impressed with the tech stack they 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.”

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.