Digital Freight Network

While news of the shuttering of Seattle-based digital freight network Convoy reverberated throughout industry circles last week, it raised the question of if there is another shoe to drop, in the form of another well-capitalized player, or players, potentially exit the industry, too.

Following heavy speculation in recent days that it was taking steps to wind down its business operations, Seattle-based digital freight broker Convoy is officially closing down its current core business operations, according to a company letter sent to Convoy employees from Convoy CEO and Co-Founder Dan Lewis.

Following heavy speculation in recent days that it was taking steps to wind down its business operations, Seattle-based digital freight broker Convoy is officially closing down its current core business operations, according to a company letter sent to Convoy employees from Convoy CEO and Co-Founder Dan Lewis.

Various media reports are indicating that Seattle-based digital freight broker Convoy is taking steps to wind down its business operations.

San Francisco-based freight forwarding and customs brokerage services provider Flexport is taking steps to establish a truck brokerage unit, with the hiring of a well-known executive from Uber Freight. In an internal company memo provided to LM, Flexport CEO Dave Clark said that effective May 22, Bill Driegert will join the company as its EVP, Head of Trucking, reporting directly to Clark.

Through this collaboration, WattEV will provide electric trucking capability to Uber Freight shippers, beginning with CHEP, a pallet and container pool services provider, noted an Uber Freight blog posting. And it added that this pilot serves as an important milestone in electric freight transportation, while also establishing Uber Freight’s first EV (electric vehicle) deploymen

Seattle-based digital freight network Convoy introduced a new service that it said provides shippers with dedicated truck and trailer capacity that can flex to accommodate surges in freight. Entitled Convoy Dedicated On Demand, the company said this new service offers shippers things like cost stability and quality service expected from traditional asset carriers, coupled with the company’s flexibility, for sourcing a single truck or an entire fleet in a matter of days.

Third quarter earnings for Greenwich, Conn.-based XPO Logistics were very strong, according to results issued earlier today. Quarterly revenue—at $3.04 billion—was down 7% annually but was up 3% when excluding third quarter 2021 revenue from its intermodal business, which was sold in March 2022.

Company officials said that this office can hold up to 350 employees and represents what Arrive called a continuation of its strategic expansion goals, driven by more than $300 million in funds raised in 2021.

Convoy officials said that this initiative is focused on helping freight brokers on various fronts, including: automating the brokerage process, controlling costs, and accessing elastic capacity from more than 400,000 connected trucks via its Convoy for Brokers tool, which enables brokerages to post loads directly to its digital freight network, access our elastic capacity, and expand their carrier base while maintaining their relationships with shippers and carriers and ensuring the privacy of their data.

The new funding includes: a $160 million Series E preferred equity round led by Baillie Gifford and funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc.; a $100 million venture-debt investment from Hercules Capital, Inc.; and a new $150 million line of credit.

Total quarterly shipments increased 6.8%, from the second quarter to the third quarter, and saw a 10.6% annual gain, and total revenue saw a 10.3% increase, from the second quarter to the third quarter, while seeing a 36.1% annual gain.

Convoy officials said that its new power-only service through Convoy Go provides private fleets with nationwide capacity to haul pre-loaded and empty dry van trailers. And they added that with its network of more than 300,000 tractors, Convoy now provides the largest on-demand fleet of power units in the market.

As the initial shock, or surprise, of last week’s announcement that San Francisco-based Uber Freight announced it is acquiring Frisco, Texas-based Transplace.

Earlier today, San Francisco-based Uber Freight, a subsidiary of the ubiquitous, ride-sharing service Uber, whose proprietary app matches trucking companies with loads to haul, announced it is acquiring Frisco, Texas-based Transplace, a non-asset-based third-party logistics services provider, for roughly $2.25 billion and consisting of up to $750 million in common stock of Uber.