eFishery Announces IDR 3 Trillion Series D Funding

Aquaculture startup eFishery announces $200 million (around 3 trillion Rupiah) Series D funding. The nominal received is greater than the previous publication in May 2023. This announcement also confirms the status of eFishery as unicorn 15th from Indonesia, because it was announced that its valuation had exceeded $1 billion.

The company will use this fresh fund to accelerate its target of developing farming communities in Indonesia, as well as increasing transactions for fish feed and fresh fish.

The round was led by 42XFund, an investment management company based in the UAE, supported by Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Incorporated) (KAWP) which is a pension fund company from Malaysia, responAbility Investments AG (Switzerland), 500 Global, and several other investors.

Early investors such as Northstar, Temasek and Softbank also participated in this funding round. Meanwhile, Goldman Saschs is acting as an exclusive funding advisor. It is said that this latest investment shows investor confidence in the integrated aquaculture ecosystem owned by eFishery.

"Currently aquaculture is the fastest growing sector in the global fishing industry. The strategic support we are receiving from investors will help eFishery revolutionize the entire industry, through the integration of fish farmers and small-scale shrimp farmers with the eFishery ecosystem that covers the entire value chain aquaculture business," said eFishery Co-founder and CEO Gibran Huzaifah in an official statement, Friday (7/7).

The integrated ecosystem of eFishery which includes marketplace fish and shrimp feed, a platform for selling fresh fish and shrimp products on a B2B basis, as well as access to finance for fish farmers, have supported more than 70.000 fish farmers and shrimp farmers in more than 280 cities/regencies throughout Indonesia.

Based on the latest research from the Demographic Institute of the Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Indonesia (LD FEB UI), throughout 2022 eFishery will be able to contribute IDR 3,4 trillion or the equivalent of 1,55% of the GDP of the Indonesian aquaculture sector.

Gibran also said that the funds in this round would be used for community development of fish cultivators and shrimp farmers eFisheries which is targeting more than 1 million aquaculture ponds in Indonesia by 2025. Also, to increase transactions for fish feed and fresh aquaculture products on the platform.

The development of the farmer community is in line with eFishery's efforts to increase exports of domestic shrimp products that are free of chemicals and antibiotics, and are fully traceable (traceable) to the international market, as well as bringing consumers and fish farmers closer together.

The investors who participated in this round also submitted their statements. One of them, 42XFund Principal Iman Adiwibowo, expressed his confidence in eFishery's vision and his interest in becoming a key partner who provides added value and contributes to the company's growth.

"We believe that eFishery can continue to contribute to realizing an inclusive and sustainable economy, as well as play a role in preserving the environment in Indonesia, and even the world," said Iman.

Founded in Bandung, West Java in 2013, eFishery has disrupted the aquaculture industry by presenting an Internet of Things (IoT)-based digital auto feeder solution designed to increase accountability, efficiency, and convenience in the fish farming business.

eFishery's data-driven technology approach uses sensors to measure fish movement and the acoustics of shrimp, optimizing feeding, as well as fish health and water quality, while reducing waste.

Besides eFishery a number of startups aquatech others in Indonesia included Fishlog, JALA, DELOS, and FisTx. They have also received funding support from investors to launch their business penetration in the fishery/aquaculture industry in the country.