Sep 25, 2017

Chinese supply chain management startup YH has just secured an impressive Series A funding round. Reports on Friday (Sept. 22) said the company raised $182 million from private equity firms Yonghua Capital and Co-Energy Finance. YH is now valued at $1 billion, reports noted. YH provides supply chain management and logistics services to companies and eCommerce firms. Alibaba and Samsung are clients, according to reports, and the company operates with logistics centers at more than 50 cities in China. “In the Industrial 4.0 era, innovation of supply chain management is at the core of the future,” said Yonghua Capital in a statement announcing news of the investment. “Those companies with the abilities to consolidate supply chain capabilities will become great corporations of tomorrow.” The Series A funding will be used to expand its logistics and delivery services across Southeast Asia, Russia and the Middle East, reports said. While YH operates in the supply chain management space, other FinTechs in China have turned to supply chain finance as banks struggle to fill the gap. According to  research released earlier this year, companies across the globe use an average of 14 supply chain financing banks, with the Chinese market showing some of the most acute signs of companies looking to consolidate their supply chain financing sources. China’s logistics and delivery market has also seen significant activity. Earlier this month, Chinese logistics firm Best said it would look to raise $930 million through a U.S. IPO. Amazon, meanwhile, has also made moves to strengthen its logistics presence in China, with reports saying last year that Amazon could be moving toward providing shipping and logistics services for other companies. The country’s logistics market saw $1.6 trillion in revenue last year, according to reports.