PayCargo raises $130M from Blackstone Growth to expand internationally

By Nancy Dahlberg and Doreen Hemlock

PayCargo, provider of a logistics payments and data infrastructure platform, has raised $130 million from funds managed by Blackstone Growth. The mega-round, a Series C announced today, will support the Coral Gables-based fintech company’s continued expansion both domestically and internationally, its development of new products, and growth through strategic acquisitions.

“PayCargo is a category leader, operating at the intersection of several of our highest-conviction investment themes – including the continued proliferation of electronic payments, the digitization of the supply chain, and the modernization of business-to-business payments,” said Vini Letteri, Senior Managing Director and Head of Financial Services for Blackstone Growth, in a statement. “We believe that these attractive tailwinds, combined with the strength of PayCargo’s offering, positions the company well for its next phase of growth.”

With its cloud-based tools, PayCargo lets customers pay electronically for freight services such as transport by air, sea and rail, speeding up payments and allowing for quicker release of cargo. Prior to this round of capital, PayCargo raised $160 million in Series A and Series B funding in 2020 and 2021, led by New York-based Insight Partners.

PayCargo’s business has been soaring. In a recent interview with Refresh Miami, CEO Eduardo Del Riego said that in 2021, PayCargo processed a record $10 billion in payments through its online platform, up from roughly $4 billion in 2020 and just $2 billion in 2019. And this year, he said, expansion into the Middle East and Asia should catapult the business to $20 billion in payments processed.

Eduardo Del Riego

In 2021, PayCargo’s revenue topped $40 million, and that number also is doubling yearly. “We’re looking to do this year over $100 million in revenue,” said Del Riego, a longtime freight executive and PayCargo’s chief since 2013.

PayCargo also expects to grow its staff to more than 200 employees globally this year. The company was started by a group of South Florida cargo executives in 2007, and it has been profitable since its early days.

Currently, more than 40,000 business customers, including DHL, DB Schenker, BDP, Seko Logistics, Kuehne + Nagel and UPS, use PayCargo’s cloud-based payment network to source and pay over 5,000 global logistics vendors.

Blackstone Growth, the world’s largest alternative asset manager, has invested significantly in the broader logistics, supply chain, and e-commerce space, including acquiring a leading port operator in North America and over 1.1 billion square feet of warehouse assets globally.

“Our partnership with Blackstone plays an important role in furthering our commitment to transforming the movement of goods and fostering increased efficiencies through PayCargo’s payment platform. Like Blackstone, we share the same mission and vision – serving the needs of our customers by building the largest independent freight payments network. Blackstone’s experience in the logistics, supply chain, and e-commerce space will be invaluable for PayCargo as we continue to expand globally,” Del Riego said in a statement.

READ MORE ON REFRESH MIAMI: Despite supply chain woes, PayCargo has been doubling its business yearly, aggressively hiring

Nancy Dahlberg