Alibaba’s Ant Financial has co-led an RMB1bn ($144m) Series C financing round for Chinese logistics and FinTech business Keking.
The company’s platform integrates cargo and vehicle management with financial services such as capital settlement, credit scoring of business partners and drivers, and inclusive services such as freight and truck installments.
Sequoia Capital reinvested in the business as part of the latest round, which also drew support from Centerium Capital, Tebon Securities and Shanghai Tengyi Industrial.
Keking had earlier raised an RMB100m Series A round from Sequoia in 2015, and a year later joined a RMB200m Series B investment in the firm with participation from AVIC Trust, Tebon Securities and China Fellow Partners.
The Series C round comes at a time when Alibaba plans to invest over RMB100bn in a smart logistics network, and believes the strategic partnership with Keking will create a platform of data, technology and financial services that suits micro, small and medium enterprises as well as the vehicle drivers.
The total cost of logistics in China last year was RMB12tn, accounting for about 15 per cent of the country’s GDP – much higher than that of developed markets in Europe and America, Keking said in a statement.
In the past three years Keking – which also appears to be referred to as Kaijin – has served more than 10,000 small and micro-logistics businesses, one million driver drivers, and the annual platform bill is about RMB70bn.
Ji Gang, vice president of Ant Financial Services, said: “Kaijing Technology has been deeply cultivating the logistics industry since its establishment, and has precipitated the unique capabilities of logistics digitalization and quantitative models.
“Ant Financial is committed to creating an open ecosystem for small and micro enterprises and consumers. Providing inclusive financial services.
“Ant Financial will team up with Kaijing to build the data, technology and financial services that understand the small micro-logistics and drivers, and continue to support the development of unicorns such as Kaijing.”
Copyright © 2018 FinTech Global
![Temenos (SIX: TEMN) today announced that National Bank of Iraq (NBI), part of the Capital Bank Group, has successfully gone live with Temenos core banking and payments. NBI, which has 27 branches across Iraq, offers a comprehensive range of services to individuals and businesses in the country. Since 2005, NBI has been majority owned by Capital Bank, one of the top financial institutions operating in the Jordanian and regional markets, with assets of approximately JOD 7.6 billion[1]. With this implementation, NBI moved from its legacy systems onto the same core banking platform as other entities in the Capital Bank Group. This will enable NBI to operate more efficiently and integrate seamlessly with other systems to develop new products faster and deliver an improved customer experience. Capital Bank Group is a long-standing Temenos customer with other entities in the Group including Capital Bank of Jordan, Bank Audi, Société Générale Bank Jordan and NBI Saudi Arabia, already on the Temenos platform. NBI also becomes the first part of the group to adopt Temenos Payments, which enabled the bank to process more than 100,000 transactions of incoming and outgoing domestic and international payments in the first 15 days of operation, with a 99% straight-through processing rate. The migration to the Temenos platform for core banking and payments at NBI was completed in under 12 months thanks to Temenos’ pre-configured banking and payments capabilities and APIs which reduced the need for complex customizations, as well as close collaboration between Temenos, NBI, Capital Bank and delivery partner ITSS. This success was recently recognized in the IBS Intelligence Innovation Awards, with Capital Bank winning ‘Best Implementation of Core Banking Services'. The implementation at NBI follows several other successful transformation projects with Temenos for Capital Bank in the last few years, including the launch of NBI’s branch operations in Saudi Arabia in just 45 days, as well as the integration of Bank Audi and the former Jordanian operations of Société Générale, each of which was achieved in under four months. Collectively, these projects helped Capital Bank to increase operational efficiency by more than 50% within three years, bringing significant cost savings and an improved customer experience. With faster, more accurate processing and immediate service requests, the bank has maintained high customer retention rates and a reputation for service excellence. Izzidin Abusalameh, Chief Operations Officer, Capital Bank Group, commented: “This achievement marks a significant milestone in our digital transformation journey and positions us as a leading player in the banking industry. We have seamlessly transitioned the National Bank of Iraq to a cutting-edge core banking system which will not only enhance operational efficiency but also support providing our customers with a superior digital banking experience. Our continued partnership with Temenos has not only provided us with an advanced technological platform but has also facilitated a culture of flexibility and adaptability, enabling us to execute our ambitious growth plans.” Lee Allcorn, Managing Director, Middle East & Africa, Temenos, said: “Congratulations to National Bank of Iraq and the Capital Bank team on this successful implementation that gives NBI business agility and the same modern technology platform and ability to deploy fast with pre-configured banking capabilities as the rest of the group. With Temenos, Capital Bank Group is future-ready, and we are proud to support them as they continue to innovate and leverage our platform to grow sustainably and enhance the banking experience for customers.”](https://fintech.global/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/rupixen-Q59HmzK38eQ-unsplash-2-218x150.jpg "Flutterwave teams up with Acquired.com to streamline outward remittances in EU and UK")
