Axle raises $10m Series A to advance its freight financing services

Axle recently announced it raised $10m in Series A financing after a stellar year of growth. The round was led by Crosslink Capital with participation from FJ Labs, Flexport, Tribeca Early Stage Partners, and others including existing investors Anthemis Group, Techstars, and Plug and Play Ventures.

In a press release, the company points to the past 12 months of operations where it saw volume grow 850% on its payments and financing platform designed specifically for freight brokers and carriers. The company’s services allows incumbent operators to quickly modernize and compete against new startups. Axle says its solutions also automates carrier payments, involving, and collections, which allows operators to connect all aspects of their fright operations.

Axle anticipates using the new capital to expand operations, develop new services, and strength the company’s payment and financing platform.

Co-founders Bharath Krishnamoorthy and Shawn Vo founded the company in 2019. The company raised a $1.4 million pre-seed round from Trucks VC in 2020, followed by a $2.7m seed round from Techstars and Anthemis Group and a $27.7 million debt and equity round later that year.

CEO and co-founder, Bharath Krishnamoorthy, says in a released statement “Axle’s proprietary technology levels the playing field, so our customers can compete in a highly competitive market. With our financial platform, we’re empowering freight intermediaries to rapidly grow and differentiate their businesses in a cutthroat industry. We’re excited to partner with Crosslink to transform the freight and logistics industry.”

Crosslink Capital partner David Silverman says Krishnamoorthy and Vo established themselves as an industry leader in freight factoring and payment processing, and points to the company’s previous 12 month as being impressive. “We look forward to helping them scale operations,” he says.