Trella, the Cairo-based trucking marketplace, which recently raised $600k+ in a pre-seed funding led by Algebra Ventures, has joined Y Combinator’s S19 batch, to disrupt the fragmented trucking industry in MENA.
Trella is in the right hands as YC has helped built companies including Airbnb, Dropbox, Stripe, Reddit, and Doordash and these development validates Trella’s commitment to digitizing trucking and offering a grade-A end-to-end solutions to both shippers and carriers in the trucking industry.
According to Trella, YC opens the door for invaluable opportunities for synergies and collaboration with fellow YC companies and alumni, as well as unparalleled access to YC’s network of investors, mentors, and partners.
‘We’re excited to be part of such a prestigious program,’ says Omar Hagrass, Trella’s CEO. ‘YC has already been super valuable and cemented our position with investors, partners, and stakeholders. We’re looking forward to building something really big.’
Founded in 2018, Trella is on a mission to optimize the trucking industry. using its b2b technology platform which connects shippers and carriers in real-time, using data to optimise drivers’ routes and increase the volume of backloads.
Trella empowers truckers who get significantly more value and a more consistent flow of business through the platform while also reducing costs for shippers by improving load utilisation and efficiency, and enabling shipment tracking in real-time.
Addressing an enormous pain-point in a deeply fragmented industry plagued by asset under-utilisation and a lack of transparency, consistency, and reliability, Trella’s tech platform has already piqued the interests of regional and global investors and businesses. The firm competes with Trukkin which is based in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates which recently raised over $3.5m in funding to bolster its long-haul trucking business in the MENA and GCC region and beyond.
Trella’s other competition include Lori Systems, Trukkin, Kobo360, a logistics marketplace which recently launched in Ghana, Kenya and Togo after $6 million backing from the IFC.
‘At YC, it’s our job to help talented founders from anywhere in the world to access the advice, network, and funding that Silicon Valley has to offer,’ says Michael Seibel, YC CEO and Partner. ‘With Trella, we saw extremely strong founders, tackling a huge problem, in a region of the world that needs more tech investment. It was an obvious fit.’