SAO PAULO (Reuters) – Brazilian freight marketplace Frete.com has completed its first acquisition, of transportation management software provider InterSite. Focused on managing transportation of agricultural commodities, InterSite has around 10,000 clients.
Frete.com, which has become an unicorn in its latest funding round, is buying a majority stake in InterSite in a cash and stock deal. The value and exact stake were not disclosed. InterSite founders Edilmar Alves and Sanir Bacarin will continue managing the company independently. InterSite issues documents for around 4 million truck trips a year, which generate around 11 billion reais in freight payments.
Frete.com has among its investors Tencent, Softbank Group, Goldman Sachs, Farallon Capital and individuals including buyout firm KKR founder Henry Kravis and Oscar Salazar, Uber’s co-founder.
CEO Federico Vega said the startup is now looking for potential acquisitions of other software providers, data science firms and fintechs. Frete.com already provides credit to truck drivers and transportation companies, but still in low volumes as a way to test the service. Data analysis of truck drivers and companies sharply reduces cargo theft, Vega added.
(Reporting by Tatiana Bautzer, Editing by Louise Heavens)
