eFishery has raised USD 200 million in funding
Indonesian company eFishery has become a unicorn after raising USD 200 million in investment. It is the first startup in the global fish farming industry valued at USD 1 billion. According to eFishery’s plans, they will use the funds raised to increase the number of fish farming reservoirs. By 2025, the number in Indonesia should reach 1 million. Management is also considering entering other markets.
The largest investor in the latest round was Abu Dhabi’s 42XFund. Other investors include Diperbadankan and responsAbility, a pension fund from Malaysia. Previous eFishery investors, including SoftBank and Northstar, also participated in the round.
The company is important for the development of aquaculture in the country. According to official statistics, its share of the sector in Indonesia is around 1.6%. It is worth noting that aquaculture is one of the key segments of the local economy, as the country ranks second in the world (after China) in terms of fishing.
Overview of eFishery’s activities
The startup was founded in 2013 when university student Gibran Huzaifah decided to breed catfish. In doing so, he thought about optimising the fish feeding system, as feed accounted for 80% of all production costs. Most farmers fed the fish by hand, which resulted in some of the fry gaining weight and the rest not getting enough food. In addition, some nutrients were released into the water, polluting it.
Huzaifah developed an automated fish-feeding system based on IoT technology. It currently serves around 70,000 fish and shrimp farms. eFishery has customers in 280 cities in Indonesia, and the company has plans for significant geographical expansion. In addition to the system, the unicorn startup offers its own B2B model platform for trading feed, fish, shrimp and other products.
eFishery has several goals in its operations:
– change aquaculture in the country, as approaches have not changed for more than 30 years;
– provide innovative solutions to people in rural areas, thereby increasing their use of the internet;
– reduce water pollution and the environmental impact of agriculture;
– change farmers’ attitudes towards digital products and reduce their resistance to innovation.
Although fish farming is widespread in Indonesia, only 7-9% of the sector’s potential remains untapped. With eFishery, it is possible to take local aquaculture to a radically different level of development, automating processes and increasing their efficiency.
