Indonesia fishery app Aruna extends Series A to $65m
Indonesian fishing industry app Aruna has raised USD 30m led by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India. It is described as an extension of a Series A round launched in mid-2020.
The latest investment, which also features Prosus Ventures, AC Ventures, East Ventures, Indogen Capital, SMDV, and SIG Venture Capital, brings the Series A to USD 65m. Vertex, Prosus, East, AC, SIG, and MDI Ventures invested about USD 35m last year. East, AC, and SMDV provided a USD 5.5m tranche in 2020.
Founded in 2016, Aruna offers a one-stop-shop and end-to-end supply chain aggregator that streamlines the process for Indonesian fishermen to access a global network. It claims to have grown 400x from 2017 to 2021. Demand for seafood from the platform is said to outstrip the current supply by more than 5x.
Last year, the company sold 44m kilograms of seafood to more than eight countries. It now operates in 27 provinces in Indonesia, representing 70% of the country. “Aruna’s rapid growth, despite the pandemic, clearly shows their market fit as well as the founders’ leadership to navigate through challenges,” Michael Soerijadji, founder of AC, said in a statement.
Much about the business is positioned as addressing themes around environmental protection and economic inclusion, including a campaign to support sustainable fishing practices. In 2021 alone, Aruna developed 100 communities comprising more than 26,000 registered fishermen. This is said to have generated 5,000 job “opportunities” in the rural areas in Indonesia.
Aquaculture and related seafood industry interests have become a significant investment theme in recent years. This is driven by rising demand for high-quality protein in developing Asian markets as well as increasingly strict requirements around cleaner and more transparent production processes.
As recently as earlier this month, fellow Indonesian aquaculture technology start-up eFishery raised a USD 90m Series C round. The company is targeting a user base of 1m fish farmers in the next 3-5 years.
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