SafeDigit raises $1.2M in pre-seed funding

Founded by two logistics tech leaders, the startup is after the $363.8 billion delivery services market.

Vancouver-based SafeDigit has raised USD $1.2 million in pre-seed funding for its logistics integration platform. The round was led by Ascend.vc, with participation from Acequia Capital and the Cascade Seed Fund.

Co-founded by CEO Marat Asadurian and Dale Williams, SafeDigit was created to enable logistics businesses (like delivery or courier services) to integrate with common platforms that their customers use on a daily basis, like Shopify, Wix, and WooCommerce.

For a monthly fee starting at $250, the SafeDigit platform will work to power transactions and orders with various apps and plugins. The goal is to facilitate any last-mile delivery service to create a seamless workflow with eCommerce merchants. 

According to Julie Harrelson, managing director at Cascade Seed Fund, the startup’s early success can, in part, be attributed to the background of its founders. Williams was previously chief revenue officer at Routific, another local logistics tech startup, and Asadurian has worked for data giants such as Amazon and Trulioo and led integrations and data analytics engineering teams. “SafeDigit has a unique combination of market knowledge and differentiated technology to solve a significant logistics pain point,” Harrelson said. “We are excited to be working with Marat and Dale." 

The company plans to use the funding to accelerate product and engineering, and grow its team, according to Asadurian. “Logistics is still going through its technological revolution, and the coming years will mean a lot of new software solutions and changes to how the global supply chain works. We’re just getting started and have big plans to empower our customers and connect the logistics ecosystem,” he added.

According to IBISWorld, a market research firm, there are more than 365,000 courier businesses in the U.S. alone. The world-wide delivery services market is worth $363.8 billion. Yet, the vast majority of independent package carriers are running via phone, old web portals, and email, explained Kirby Winfield, one of SafeDigit’s new investors at Ascend.vc. He’s betting on SafeDigit to solve this problem on a global scale.

“Marat and Dale are building the digital connective tissue between tens of thousands of couriers and the world's largest eCommerce platforms,” Winfield said.