Marubeni Ventures Announces a Follow-on Investment in Willbox, an International Logistic Platform Company
~Supporting digital transformation of international logistic operations~
Marubeni Ventures Inc. announces its follow-on investment in Willbox, Inc. (Head office: Yokohama, Japan, Founder & CEO: Issei Kami), an operator of the international logistics platform, Giho, in its Series A round of financing. Marubeni Ventures invested as lead investor in Willbox’s previous pre-series A round in May 2021.
Founded in 2019, Willbox operates Giho, a digital platform for international logistics that enables “fast, cheap, and clear” logistics services by redefining the optimal supply chain in international logistics involving many stakeholders. With the funds raised in the previous Pre-Series A round, the company has accelerated its operations, increasing the number of shipper companies using Giho to 85, and the number of registered logistics providers to over 160. In addition, Giho has promoted DX (Digital Transformation) of international logistics operations, helping shippers to reduce logistics costs and logistics providers to improve their operational efficiency.
In this Series A round, Willbox raised a total of approximately 700 million yen for the purpose of further business growth. In addition to existing investors Mitsubishi UFJ Capital (lead investor), Marubeni Ventures, and ANOBAKA, new investors Salesforce Ventures (US), Golden Asia Fund III (Taiwan), and Mizuho Capital participated in this round. With the funds raised, Willbox plans to accelerate the development of its services to expand its customer base, as well as enhance its domestic base and launch operations in Taiwan.
Marubeni Ventures was established as a Corporate Venture Capital firm (CVC) of Marubeni Corporation in June 2019 in order to support and accelerate the resolution of social and customer issues, and to deliver new value to society via collaboration with selected start-ups. Through this investment, Marubeni Ventures will support Willboxʼs further expansion and development.
Willbox
Headquarter : Yokohama, Kanagawa-ken, Japan
Founder & CEO : Motonari Kami
Shareholders : Marubeni Ventures, ANOBAKA, SMBC Venture Capital, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, Salesforce Ventures, Golden Asia FundⅢ, Mizuho Capital etc.