Trella, a Cairo-based digital freight marketplace in the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan, has closed a successful $42m financing round, consisting of $30m of new equity and a $12m debt facility. Maersk Growth and Raed Ventures led the equity component. Other participating investors include: Algebra Ventures; Vision Ventures; Next Billion Ventures; Venture Souq; Foundation Ventures; and Flexport. The debt facility is provided by the lending platform Lendable and other local financial institutions. Trella, which was founded in 2018, is a reinventing truck technology platform across emerging markets, with current market presence in three countries. This includes its domestic market of Egypt, as well as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. The four founders are Omar Hegras, Ali Al-Atrash, Pierre Saad, and Mohamed Al-Garm. Omar Hegras, CEO of Trella, said, "This $42m funding round is a significant boost to Trella's capabilities, business model and market opportunity." "We have a strong investor diversity and thank all participants for their support," he added, "It is great that Maersk, as a Trella-using shipper customer, is investing in our future growth." Hegras also said that the MENAP freight market is an important market that urgently needs the transparency, reliability, and efficiency that Trella and its technology platform provide. "We are trusted and used by some of the world's most recognisable brands, and we look forward to working with our partners to expand into the MENAP region," he said. Omar Almajdouie, Co-Founder of Raed Ventures, said, "Our steadfast belief in the founders along with the burgeoning shipping sector made the opportunity to lead a very exciting Trella investment round." "The innovation of Trella products has enabled significant growth in the past year despite the challenging operating environment. This is proof of their resilient business model and strong team," he also said, "We are excited to support the team on their growth journey." Jeppe Hoier, Partner at Maersk Growth, stated, "We are currently witnessing a rapid development in trucking, where freight transportation is becoming available to even the smallest of businesses due to new digital solutions." Hoier also said that the Trella platform is an excellent example of democratising the logistics sector. At the same time, Trella is Maersk Growth's first investment in Africa, founded by a team with a lot of experience from the startup scene.
