International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, and Chinese investment firm All-Stars Investment Ltd. have led a US$115 million series B-1 funding round in Huochebang, a Uber-like truck logistics start-up in China.
Existing investors Tencent Holdings Ltd., DCM and Genesis Capital also participated. China Money Network reported last month that IFC invested as much as US$20 million in Huochebang as part of a larger funding round.
"The proceeds will be used to improve our truck-goods dispatch platform, enhance our algorithm to create a better and more precise system," said Dai Wenjian, founder of Huochebang.
The company is also near the end of raising a series B-2 funding round, Dai told Chinese media.
Founded in 2014, Huochebang, which means "truck gangs" in Chinese, helps truck drivers find commodities to transport and vacant parking lots, facilitates truck sales and used truck auctions, as well as provides other related services to the trucking businesses in China.
Huochebang currently has 2.3 million certified trucks and five million daily commodity transport demands, with 1,000 service centers around China.
It operates a national dispatch system covering 360 cities in China. The company has also issued nearly one million Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) cards, and partnered with banks and insurance companies to provide financial services to truck drivers.
Headquartered in Guiyang city, Huochebang previously raised venture funding from Tencent Holdings Ltd., Hillhouse Capital, DCM, Eastern Bell Venture Capital, Genesis Capital and others.
Another similar start-up, Yunmanman, reportedly raised US$160 million in new venture funding earlier this month from two unnamed international investment institutions and existing investors.
All-Stars Investment is an alternative investment firm focused on the Internet and consumer sectors in Greater China. It was established by a group of former Morgan Stanley analysts and private bankers.