Digital freight marketplace startup Emerge secures $20M Series A funding to connect shippers with carriers

Emerge, an Arizona-based digital freight marketplace startup connecting shippers and carriers, has closed $20 Million Series A financing to grow its freight logistics platform allows shippers to find reliable truck capacity at optimized shipping rates. The round was led by NewRoad Capital Partners, a growth equity capital firm based in Rogers, Arkansas. The round also includes Greycroft and 9Yards Capital among other investors.

Founded in 2018 by brothers and industry veterans Andrew and Michael Leto, Emerge has already processed over $1 billion in freight and reported 1500% year-over-year growth from 2018 to 2019. The company’s rapid growth, founder expertise, and first of its kind software attracted multiple new strategic investors to participate in their Series A financing while also retaining incumbent investors who continue to recognize how Emerge is reshaping the industry.

Emerge’s cloud-based freight rate platform is the first digital freight marketplace connecting shippers to direct carrier rates. Emerge is designed to reduce shipper operating costs by facilitating contract optimization while improving service from quote to delivery.

“Emerge is a digital freight marketplace that serves as a procurement platform for domestic trucking,” said Andrew Leto, Emerge’s founder. “The platform has been adopted by several Fortune 500 companies and hundreds of SMB organizations that rely on our technology to reduce freight spend, improve visibility and increase operational efficiencies. Many of them have achieved double-digit cost reduction on their transportation spend.”

“Uniquely, Emerge combines an exciting new technology designed to serve existing, unmet market need with experienced industry operators and entrepreneurs. Andrew and Michael are building the most innovative marketplace we’ve seen in the freight and digital marketplace industry — bringing contracts and carriers together to create new capacity. We are excited to be leading their Series A and I am thrilled to join the board to support their growth,” said Tracy Black of NewRoad.

“We couldn’t be happier to have NewRoad lead our Series A,” said Michael Leto, Emerge’s CEO. “They bring a strong mix of operational expertise and industry leadership to the table. We’re excited to add a category-leader and tech veteran like Tracy Black to the board and see what we will be able to accomplish together in 2020 and beyond.”

The company has assembled a board of freight industry leaders that includes Jack Holmes, the former President of UPS Freight, who has joined as Chairman of the Board and Pat Reed, the former Executive Vice President and COO of FedEx Freight. NewRoad’s Tracy Black, who previously served as SVP of Information Technology at J.B. Hunt Transport, has also joined the board since leading Emerge’s Series A.

“We’re proud to have backed the Letos and Emerge since it was just a concept back in 2017,” said Will Szczerbiak, Principal at Greycroft. “We believe we have the best, most experienced team in the trucking business and are excited to welcome NewRoad, who furthers our range when it comes to key relationships and background in the industry.”

Andrew and Michael Leto are multi-time freight industry founders. Prior to founding Emerge, the Letos launched GlobalTranz, a leading third-party logistics company as well at 10-4 Systems, a freight tracking software company eventually sold to Trimble. With the latest round of funding the company plans to expand its development, operations and enterprise sales teams and is expected to move into its brand new 37,000 square foot headquarters in Scottsdale, AZ in March 2020.