Berlin-based digital freight forwarder Sennder bags $160 million at a $1 billion+ valuation

Berlin-based digital freight forwarder sennder has secured $160 million at a $1 billion+ valuation in growth funding to "accelerate digitalization of European trucking" and boost its expansion plans.

All of its prior investors participated in the round, but it was group of new investors that led the round, sennder says. To date, the company has raised more than $260 million from Accel, Lakestar, HV Capital, Project A and Scania.

Sennder was founded in 2015 by David Nothacker, Julius Köhler and Nicolaus Schefenacker.

From our recent profile on the company:

"David Nothacker had a busy summer of deal making. He heads up Sennder, a digital freight forwarder that connects different parts of the logistics process, from shippers to carriers, and the startup has been greatly expanding its reach this year.

In June, the Berlin-based company merged with French rival Everoad and entered a €100 million joint venture with the Italian postal service, Poste Italiane.

Most notably in September it acquired the European freight business of Uber in all stock deal – no terms were disclosed – with Uber becoming a shareholder in the company.

Uber Freight had been making inroads in Europe – just launching in Germany a little over a year ago in July 2019 – and counted some big names among its client base like Nestle and LG but its vision for Europe didn’t quite match up with the US.

While Uber Freight decided to sell off its European operations, just weeks later the Uber unit raised $500 million from investors to take on other markets. That left Sennder in prime position to become the dominant player in Europe."

Indeed, sennder now says it expects to move over 1 million truckloads this year. The scale-up also said it will put $100 million of its Series D financing to work into growing and developing its technology, notably by expanding its 200-person technology team and accelerate research and development into the automation and digitalisation of road freight. It will also tap into new European markets.

Said Nothacker in a canned statement:

"I’m very proud to see sennder’s mission and vision become a reality. We are now an established industry player on equal terms with other more traditional sector pioneers, but have maintained our founding spirit. As a data-driven company, we contribute to making the logistics industry fit for a sustainable future; ensuring transparency, flexibility and efficiency in the distribution of goods."

"The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the importance of a digitalized logistics industry. Throughout 2020, we helped our carriers increase their profitability by enhancing operating margins by up to 80% during a challenging time. sennder is uniquely positioned to drive industry digitalization, benefiting shippers and carriers alike," he added.