Kobo360 Funding, Investors & Competitors

Kobo360 has raised $75M across 5 funding rounds, most recently a $48M Series B in December 2021.

Last Kobo360 funding round

$48M

Series B · Dec 2021

Cumulative funding Kobo360 raised

$75M

across 5 funding rounds

Key investors in Kobo360

  • Y Combinator
  • International Finance Corporation
  • TLcom Capital Partners
  • Goldman Sachs
  • Western Technology Investment
  • Future Africa
  • Chandaria Capital
  • Varsha Rao

Kobo360 Overview

About Kobo360

Kobo360 is a Lagos, Nigeria-headquartered digital logistics platform aggregating truckers for cargo transport across Africa. Founded in 2017 by Ife Oyedele and Obi Ozor, it uses big data for route optimization, reducing supply chain costs and farm wastage. The platform provides end-to-end visibility for manufacturers and farmers, expanding into agro-trading marketplaces connecting smallholders to global buyers.


Founded

2017

HQ

NigeriaLagos

Status

Privately held

Customer focus

B2B

Revenue model

Commission, Subscription

Kobo360 Funding History

Kobo360 has raised a total of $75M across 5 funding rounds, plus 1 secondary share sale.

Kobo360's first fundraising round was a $1M pre-seed round in June 2018. The most recent completed round was a $48M Series B in December 2021.

Kobo360 funding rounds

Kobo360 funding rounds
DateStageInvestorsRaisedDeal Summary
Mar 2025SecondaryObi Ozor (lead)$79MKobo360 is a Nigerian freight logistics startup that digitizes truck matching for businesses, launched in 2017 and once aggregating over 50,000 trucks with clients like Unilever, Dangote, and DHL. In March 2025, co-founder and ex-CEO Obi Ozor bought back the company from investors including TLCom Capital and Juven, who had collectively invested $79 million across rounds such as $20 million Series A in 2019 and $48 million Series B in 2021. The transaction transferred full ownership to Ozor along with at least ₦10 billion ($15.82 million) in bank debt and liabilities. Kobo360 had faced operational halts, leadership changes, layoffs, and stalled growth due to credit line cuts and working capital shortages after pausing operations in late 2024. Ozor leads a team of under ten to restructure debt, secure haulage contracts, and restart by Q2 2025 using traditional financing.
Dec 2021Series BThe Fund for Export Development in Africa (lead); TLcom Capital Partners; Juven; Goldman Sachs; International Finance Corporation; V8 Capital Partners$48MKobo360 is a Nigerian logistics-tech startup operating an Uber-for-trucks platform that aggregates truck owners and drivers to serve clients like Unilever, Dangote, and DHL across countries including Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, and Uganda. The company has worked with over 50,000 trucks, transporting over 760 million kilos of goods worth an estimated $200 billion for more than 1,000 clients. It launched KoPAY, a fintech lending product to provide immediate payments to drivers, which was expected to become a major revenue contributor. In December 2021, Kobo360 raised $48 million in a Series B round comprising both equity and debt, led by The Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), the equity arm of Afreximbank. Existing investors including Goldman Sachs (via Juven), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and TLcom Capital Partners participated, along with V8 Capital Partners and other bank and insurance partners. This was half of the company's $96 million fundraising target for the round, following a $20 million Series A in 2019 led by Goldman Sachs and $10 million in working capital from Nigerian banks, bringing total funding to over $79 million in equity and debt. Operations faced challenges from COVID-19 travel restrictions in 2020, prompting a pivot with over $4 million invested in an insurtech product for goods-in-transit risks, driver behavior, and credit default. Post-round, Kobo360 encountered difficulties including staff layoffs of 60%, operational shutdowns, and N10 billion in bank loan debt due to funding issues and blitzscaling reliance on fundraising over profitability. Leadership changes occurred with CEO replacements, but the company's proprietary technology remains a potential asset for acquisition.
Aug 2019Series AGoldman Sachs (lead); TLcom Capital Partners; Y Combinator; AAIC Investment; International Finance Corporation$20MKobo360 is a Nigerian freight logistics startup launched in 2017 that operates an Uber-like app connecting truckers and companies for delivery services, with a fleet of over 10,000 drivers and trucks, serving major clients like Honeywell, Olam, Unilever, Dangote, and DHL. The company operates in Nigeria, Togo, Ghana, and Kenya, planning to expand to 10 new countries using the funding. It aims to develop its Global Logistics Operating System (GLOS), a blockchain-enabled platform for broader supply-chain services, and add 25,000 drivers to support intra-African trade under the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement. On August 14, 2019, Kobo360 closed a $20 million Series A equity round led by Goldman Sachs, with participation from Asia Africa Investment and Consulting (AAIC), and existing investors TLcom Capital Partners, Y Combinator, and International Finance Corporation (IFC). An additional $10 million in working capital financing in local currency came from Nigerian commercial banks including FCMB, Polaris Bank, and Fidelity Bank, totaling $30 million in funding. The equity round follows prior raises: $6 million from IFC and $1.2 million seed led by Western Technology Investment, plus $120,000 from Y Combinator's 2018 Summer cohort. Funds will upgrade the platform, accelerate driver supply growth, scale operations, and develop technology offerings to improve reliability and efficiency in Africa's logistics ecosystem. Goldman Sachs highlighted Kobo360's quick scaling, tech-driven improvements, and replicable model across geographies. The Series A ranked as the 5th largest African startup investment that year per Digest Africa, after Svwl's $42 million raise. Kobo360 has earned accolades including Disrupter of the Year at the 2019 Africa CEO Forum Awards and Best Enterprise Solution at the 2018 AppsAfrica Innovation Awards.
Dec 2018SeedInternational Finance Corporation (lead); TLcom Capital Partners; Y Combinator; CardinalStone Capital Advisers; Chandaria Capital; Western Technology Investment$6MKobo360 is a Nigerian tech-enabled e-logistics platform that connects truck owners with cargo owners for long-haul freight services, targeting agribusiness, consumer goods, and manufacturing sectors. The company operates an Uber-like app linking truckers and enterprises, with plans to evolve into a full supply chain management platform including tracking, sales, and accounting tools. At the time of funding, it had 5,000 trucks from over 600 small fleet owners serving major Nigerian enterprises, had served 900 businesses, aggregated 8,000 drivers, and moved 155 million kilograms of goods for clients like Honeywell, Olam, Unilever, Dangote, and DHL. In December 2018, Kobo360 raised a $6 million seed equity round led by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), with participation from Cardinal Stone Partners, Chandaria Capital, TLcom Capital Partners, Western Technology Investment, Y Combinator, and others. The funds aimed to upgrade the platform and expand operations to Ghana, Togo, Ivory Coast, Senegal, and other African markets. IFC's Wale Ayeni and TLcom's Omobola Johnson joined the board as part of the transaction. The company was described as profitable following full legal and financial due diligence by IFC, though specific financial metrics were not disclosed.
Jul 2018SeedY Combinator; Varsha Rao$100K-
Jun 2018Pre-seedO.D. Kobo (lead); Western Technology Investment (lead); Verod Capital Management; Future Africa$1M-

Who has invested in Kobo360?

16 investors have backed Kobo360 across its funding rounds, including Y Combinator, International Finance Corporation, TLcom Capital Partners, Goldman Sachs, Western Technology Investment and Future Africa.

Lead investors include Obi Ozor, The Fund for Export Development in Africa, Goldman Sachs, International Finance Corporation, O.D. Kobo and 1 other investor.


Kobo360 Investors

Investors in Kobo360 by funding rounds participated
InvestorHQRoundsRoleFirst check
TLcom Capital PartnersUnited KingdomLondon3ParticipantDec 2018
Y CombinatorUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA3ParticipantJul 2018
International Finance CorporationUnited StatesWashington, DC3LeadDec 2018
Goldman SachsUnited StatesNew York City, NY2LeadAug 2019
Western Technology InvestmentUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA2LeadJun 2018
Verod Capital ManagementNigeriaLagos1ParticipantJun 2018
The Fund for Export Development in AfricaRwandaKigali1LeadDec 2021
Future AfricaUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA1ParticipantJun 2018
CardinalStone Capital AdvisersNigeriaLagos1ParticipantDec 2018
AAIC InvestmentSingaporeSingapore1ParticipantAug 2019
JuvenHong KongHong Kong1ParticipantDec 2021
Varsha RaoUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA1ParticipantJul 2018
Obi Ozor--1LeadMar 2025

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Kobo360 Competitors

Kobo360 competitors include listed companies like Kuehne + Nagel and Full Truck Alliance, and private ones like Flexport, Uber Freight, Forto and Loggi.

Public and private companies comparable to Kobo360
CompanyHQStatusRevenueEBITDAValuationRevenue Multiple
FlexportUnited StatesSan Francisco, CAPrivate$471M-$8B-
Uber FreightUnited StatesSan Francisco, CAPrivate$211M-$3.3B15.6x
FortoGermanyBerlinPrivate--$2.1B-
LoggiBrazilSão PauloPrivate--$1.8B-
Kuehne + NagelSwitzerlandSwitzerlandPublicly listed$30B$2.6B$31B1.2x
Full Truck AllianceChinaChinaPublicly listed$1.9B$676M$8.4B2.8x

Kobo360 Public Comps

Kobo360 is still privately-owned, but its public comps include UPS, Canadian National Railway, FedEx, Deutsche Post, Corteva, BASF, Maersk, DSV, Archer-Daniels-Midland and Adani Ports & Special.

Last FYEV/RevenueEV/EBITDA
RevenueEBITDALast FYLTM2027ELast FYLTM2027E
UPS$89B$12B1.2x1.2x9.2x8.8x
Canadian National Railway$12B$6.5B7.2x6.8x13.6x13.9x
FedEx$95B$11B1.1x1.1x9.5x9.9x
Deutsche Post$95B$13B1.0x1.0x7.8x7.4x
Corteva$17B$2.9B3.3x3.2x19.5x13.9x
BASF$69B$8.2B1.1x1.0x8.9x8.6x
Maersk$54B$10B1.1x1.0x5.9x5.4x
DSV$38B$3.6B1.6x1.3x16.4x11.5x

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Common questions about Kobo360

When was Kobo360 founded?Kobo360 was founded in 2017.
Where is Kobo360 headquartered?Kobo360 is headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria.
Is Kobo360 publicly listed?No, Kobo360 is a private, VC-backed company.
How much funding has Kobo360 raised?Kobo360 has raised $75M across 5 funding rounds.
What was Kobo360's last funding round?Kobo360's last funding round was a $48M Series B in December 2021, led by The Fund for Export Development in Africa.
Who are Kobo360's investors?Kobo360's investors include TLcom Capital Partners, Y Combinator, International Finance Corporation, Goldman Sachs, Western Technology Investment, Verod Capital Management, The Fund for Export Development in Africa, Future Africa, CardinalStone Capital Advisers, AAIC Investment and 6 others.
Which companies are comparable to Kobo360?Companies comparable to Kobo360 include Flexport, Uber Freight, Forto, Loggi, Kuehne + Nagel and Full Truck Alliance.

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