SoftBank-backed ShipBob raises $200 million in Bain-led round, turns unicorn

(Reuters) - Cloud-based logistics platform ShipBob said on Tuesday it had raised $200 million in a late-stage funding round led by Bain Capital Ventures that more than doubled its valuation, lifting it to unicorn status.

Other participants in the latest round include existing investors SoftBank Group Corp, Menlo Ventures, Hyde Park Venture Partners, Hyde Park Angels and Silicon Valley Bank.

ShipBob had raised $68 million in a SoftBank Vision Fund 2 led-round in September. Bain Capital Ventures, the venture capital division of the Boston-based private equity firm, had also led ShipBob's Series B round in June 2017.

The company's offering brings together leading e-commerce platforms and marketplaces including Amazon.com, Walmart Inc, Shopify, Square and Wix to enable merchants manage products, inventory, orders and shipments.

"With the additional investment from Bain Capital Ventures and our Series E, we can continue to make strategic, long-term investments in our product and technology to help make ecommerce businesses more successful," said co-founder and President Divey Gulati.

A unicorn status implies a valuation of $1 billion or more.

Founded in 2014 in Chicago, the company was launched through Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's prominent incubator and startup fund, by Gulati and Dhruv Saxena, who is its chief executive officer.

More than 5,000 businesses use ShipBob's platform and it has a network of 24 fulfillment centers across five countries including United States, Canada, England, Ireland and Australia.

(Reporting by Sohini Podder in Bengaluru)

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