Ecommerce Tracking Company AfterShip Raises $66 Million

AfterShip has raised $66 million in a Series B funding round which closed this month. The ecommerce tracking company is already well established, processing more than 6 billion shipments each year. However, this money will support plans to boost the profile of the company and expand the influence of the Hong Kong-headquartered business in the US market.

What Is AfterShip? 

The company was founded in 2012 by entrepreneurs Teddy Chan, Andrew Chan, and Dante Tsang. The company won two major startup competitions the year before its official launch: Startup Weekend Hong Kong 2011 and Global Startup Battle. Since then, the business has grown into a global brand with billions of shipments processed, 10,000 customers, over 700 carrier partners, and 150 employees, according to the company website. 

The company’s main service is automated shipment tracking which has been established through partnerships with services like UPS, FedEx, and DHL. However, the business has since built out its data analytics tools to include almost all steps of the shopping experience, which has in turn broadened its customer appeal. 

Among the big-name companies that work with AfterShip are Amazon, eBay, Wish, Etsy, Harry’s, Tophatter, HP, ManoMano, and Rakuten France. The business also has a partnership with Shopify, where it is used by over 50,000 different merchants.

Money and Investors

The company has raised almost $70 million to date, according to investment tracking platform Crunchbase. The first bout of funding for the business came in a 2012 seed round. The company then pulled in $1 million in a Series A in 2014 and another $2 million in a separate Series A in 2019 led by Chinese venture capital firm 10Fund. 

The round closed this month has been by far the largest sum of money raised by the company. The Series B round was led by US investment firm Tiger Global Management, whose global partner Pengfei Wang highlighted the potential of AfterShip as “growth in e-commerce spirals ever upward.” “We are excited to partner with AfterShip and its leadership team as they continue to advance technology in this critical and expanding industry,” Wang said.

The Future of the Company

The company is already profitable and has been since its launch, according to co-founder Andrew Chan. Now, with this massive round of funding in pocket, the focus will remain on growing the already successful business even further. More specifically, the funding will be used to grow AfterShip’s sales team, hiring more sales and customer support staff. There will also be a focus on expanding business within the US, where 70% of AfterShip’s customers are currently based. 

AfterShip is part of a growing market. The shipment tracking software industry is set to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9% through 2027. However, the company is not without competition. It will have to contend with other key industry players, including WiseTech Global, Buyco, UltraShipTMS, Fleet Harmony, ShipTrackApp, ProShip, ShipConsole, and others. It’s because of this competition that the company has remained focused on evolving and expanding its technology and offerings. This funding round will help the company do get closer to its goals.

Jemima McEvoy

Jemima is a journalist who enjoys reporting on business, particularly small business and entrepreneurship.

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