MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Accion, Sturgeon Lead $6.4m Equity Round for Trukkr, Fintech Serving Trucking SMEs in Pakistan

Trukkr, a Pakistan-based financial technology (fintech) firm, recently obtained USD 6.4 million in a funding round led by two impact investors, US-based Accion Venture Lab and UK-based Sturgeon Capital, with placements also made by Al Zayani Venture Capital, Haitou Global and Peter Findley. The breakdown of the funding by investor has not been released.

Trukkr supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and their clients in the trucking industry with financial services, job opportunities, and expense and shipment tracking. The firm was established in 2019 and reports since having facilitated 100,000 trips by 20,000 drivers for 100 companies.

Founded in 1961, Accion is a nonprofit that seeks to alleviate poverty by offering services such as microenterprise loans and business training. Accion created Accion Venture Lab in 2011 to serve as its “seed-stage investment arm.” The mission of the investment vehicle is to support “technology and [other] new approaches that help underserved people and small businesses benefit from the world’s formal economy.” The majority of Accion Venture Lab’s 54 investees – as of 2023 – are in the microfinance and financial technology sectors.

Founded in 2006, Sturgeon Capital invests in technology startups in emerging markets, with a particular focus on early stage fintech, business-to-business and marketplace companies. Its goals include to generate positive and “wide ranging developmental impact on the economies and societies.”

Al Zayani Venture Capital is a unit of Bahrain-based Al Zayani Investments Group that is “focused on investing in start-ups and disruptive technology.” The venture capital firm is active in sectors including automotive, food and beverage, and real estate.

Founded in 2014, Haitou Global is a US-based asset allocation platform providing asset management, advisory and investment banking services.

Peter Findley is an investor and managing partner at the US-based venture fund Anchorless Bangladesh.

By Vaughn Rajah, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

Accion press release
https://www.accion.org/trukkr-raises-6-4-million-from-accion-venture-lab-and-sturgeon-capital-to-digitize-pakistans-trucking-industry

Trukkr homepage
https://trukkr.pk

Trukkr App via the App Store
https://apps.apple.com/in/app/truckkr/id1597704404

Trukkr App via Google Play
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.trukkrPak.transporter

Accion homepage
https://accion.org

Sturgeon Capital homepage
https://sturgeoncapital.com

Al Zayani homepage
https://www.alzayani.com

Haitou Global homepage
https://www.haitouglobal.com