Shipping software provider Shipamax raises $2.5m in Seed funding

London-based ship-booking software provider Shipamax has raised $2.5m in Seed funding, led by American venture capital firm Cherubic Ventures, and joined by AME Cloud and FF Angel, the angel investing arm of Founders Fund.

The firm will use its new investment to expand its customer base, accelerate product development, and boost its staff numbers, it said in a statement.

Shipamax, founded last year, aims to move the bulk shipping industry “into the digital age” by creating a single cloud-based platform to allow businesses to book space on cargo ships.

The firm’s platform will help shipbrokers, shipowners, ship operators, and charterers share internal information more easily and “turn data into their competitive advantage”, Shipamax says.

“Bulk shipping powers the world economy – the grains we eat, the steel we build with, and the fuels we consume all get transported by bulk ships,” said Jenna Brown, the firm’s co-founder and CEO.

“Despite industry perils, demand for dry bulk has increased 40% since the financial crisis. We’re enabling the industry to keep up with the pace of change in technology and put them on the road to recovery.”

Brown previously worked at London-based FinTech startup GoCardless, founded in 2011.

The firm’s other founder is computer scientist Fabian Blaicher.

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