Teleport invests in Indonesia's Kargo to beef up logistics capabilities

Teleport, the logistics venture of airasia, has invested in Kargo Technologies, Indonesian trucking marketplace, in the form of convertible notes. This acquisition was funded through Teleport’s internally generated sources.

The investment connects Kargo’s trucking network to Teleport’s infrastructure, expanding Teleport’s mid-mile capabilities beyond just air cargo. In line with Teleport’s mission to move things across Southeast Asia better than anybody else, the partnership with Kargo unlocks an opportunity to combine air connectivity with trucking capabilities on the ground, leveraging strong technology and enhancing the network.

For Indonesia, in particular, given its archipelagic geography and topography, the most effective way to connect these cities is to operate a “middle mile” service connecting both land and air. For Kargo, Teleport’s regional presence, vast network and rich data will assist them to expand their footprint rapidly across the region. The partnership will also support Teleport’s commitment to making 24 hour deliveries possible using the multi-modal routes across the archipelago.

Kargo Technologies has over 75,000 trucks in its network and is digitalising logistics for shippers and transporters. Kargo will use the funds from the transaction to support the company’s continued growth for end-to-end freight coverage in the B2B space and for expansion to other cities in the region in conjunction with Teleport.

Pete Chareonwongsak, CEO of Teleport said: "When we were first connected to Tiger Fang, co-founder and CEO of Kargo in 2021, we almost instantly agreed that both a commercial partnership and potential investment by Teleport would make sense for both parties. It has always been our goal to deliver with speed at low cost and to serve the underserved, which is why we acknowledge that the fastest-growing cities of the future will be smaller 'middleweight' cities, rather than larger primary cities."

To support this, Chareonwongsak said Teleport needs to look beyond the AirAsia network and air transportation to connect these emerging cities. At the same time, Fang said the strategic partnership with Teleport will help the company become multi-modal, expanding in the value chain horizontally. "We expect the partnership to mutually benefit both parties by growing each other’s presence in South East Asia in 2022 as we look to solve the evergreen logistics issue in the region," Fang said.

Separately, AirAsia Group rebranded the holding company to Capital A to reflect its new core business strategy as an investment holding company with a portfolio of synergistic travel and lifestyle businesses. According to the Group, the name change will not have any effect on the company's operations. CEO Tony Fernandes also said he believes the new company name will further enhance the marketability of its products and boost the success of its Group for the long haul.

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