Deutsche Bahn’s freight wing, DB Schenker has taken a $25m minority stake in uShip, having signed a five-year deal with the US-based online freight-shipping marketplace last year.
DB Schenker uses uShip’s platform software to run its own ‘Drive4Schenker’ (D4S) online service, which matches drivers and cargo. The service launched in Germany earlier this month and is being rolled out across Europe. It manages 5,000 loads per day with 30,000 DB Schenker transport providers.
Earlier this month, ‘Drive4Schenker’ launched in Germany and will continue to roll out across Europe, optimizing management of 5,000 loads per day with 30,000 DB Schenker transport providers.
“Expanding our successful partnership will expedite and streamline transport management and help us, as a market leader in European land transport, to handle even larger volumes of freight,” said Jochen Thewes, CEO of Schenker.
“We also intend to quickly develop and tap new opportunities to grow outside of our traditional business models. This is our largest equity interest in a digital company to date and it shows how serious we are about innovation at DB Schenker. We’re investing in shaping the future of digital logistics.”
New CEO at uShip
Earlier this month uShip appointed Mike Williams as CEO and board member. Williams is an enterprise software veteran and moved from Accruent, the facilities management software provider where he was general manager of corporate real estate services.
“What the uShip team has built to date around key products and milestone partnerships has put it on the doorstep of explosive growth, especially in its enterprise and SMB segments,” says Williams, who begins his role on February 13th.
“There’s tremendous opportunity to drive more value for our current marketplace customers and partners as the logistics industry navigates a new wave of transformation, led in part by uShip’s online marketplace experience and technology."
The company is based in Austin, Texas, with European headquarters in Amsterdam.
