MENA's largest truck aggregator, TruKKer has launched operations in Egypt, according to the International Finance Corporation's (IFC) press statement on Sunday. The statement said that TruKKer started a business to business (B2B) operations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in January 2018 and has since expanded to all Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and Jordan. TruKKer now services more than 250 businesses, operates approximately 18,000 trucks and carries out an estimated 1,000 daily transactions. IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has supported the company's growth. The organisation was among the main investors in TruKKer's Series A fundraise of $23m, one of the largest Series A rounds in the MENA region, the statement said. Other prominent international investors in TruKKer include Saudi Telecom Ventures, Endeavor Catalyst, Riyad Capital, Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), Iliad Partners, Oman Technology Fund, Shorooq ventures, RAED Ventures, 500 startups, and Averroes Ventures of Egypt. "TruKKer is creating the region's first road-freight exchange that connects the demand for trucks and its supply in real-time with the use of advanced technology and enabling infrastructure. Clients benefit from the reliable supply at the best rates while member transporters enjoy higher asset utilisation and prompt payments," the statement read. Gaurav Biswas, TruKKer's founder and CEO says, "We are very excited about Egypt and the value our products and services create for cargo owners and the transportation ecosystem in the region. Our ongoing success and experience in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will help us to bring the best practices to the Egyptian road freight market. We thrive on making the interface between the cargo owners and transporters seamless with the use of technology and digitisation." "TruKKer is the largest truck aggregator in the Middle East and we are glad to support its growth in the MENA region", says William Sonneborn, senior director of Disruptive Technologies and Funds at the IFC. Sonneborn added, "IFC has invested in multiple technology-based truck aggregators globally and we are excited about TruKKer's entry into Egypt." Walid Labadi, IFC's country manager for Egypt, Libya, and Yemen said that supporting innovation is a priority for IFC in Egypt and the wider MENA region as it can help spur economic growth and create much-needed jobs for young people. "Our investment is also part of our wider strategy that aims to encourage south-south investments, helping companies from GCC break into new markets, creating employment, and raising local standards along the way," he elaborated. TruKKer has been building its team in Egypt in recent months and recently hired its regional Director Sherif Mohsen, who founded another large trucking aggregator before joining TruKKer. TruKKer will support local transporters and drivers by investing heavily in enabling an infrastructure that makes regional cargo movements more secure, reliable, and digitised. TruKKer is headquartered in Abu Dhabi and operates all over GCC with offices in the UAE, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain.
