Bangladesh has the eighth largest population in the world: 165 million people living in an area the size of

Iowa with an economy that’s been growing almost 10% a year nominally for the last decade. This
growing consumer demand in a high-density market creates an industry worth over US$10 billion a year
in truck freight alone.

At Anchorless Bangladesh, our goal is to identify early stage startups best-suited to take advantage of
such large, unique opportunities in Bangladesh. Loop is a company on that exact mission, re-imagining
the movement of commercial goods for next generation shippers and carriers. We are thrilled to
announce a seed investment in Loop and look forward to working closely with this brilliant, passionate
team in contributing to a better Bangladesh — and beyond.

The Starting Point

When we meet founders, we first try to understand their motivation and desire for doing what they do
— and if the problem they’re trying to solve is something they’ve faced first-hand. In Loop’s case, co-
founders Fahim Salam and Rajib Das both have experience: Fahim cut his teeth trading blankets via
Alibaba which led him to discover the world of “broken freight.” Rajib, on the other hand, spent time at
the Port of Vancouver and left with a desire to solve myriad inefficiencies — which multiplied tenfold
when he came back home to Bangladesh to handle the supply chain aspect of his family’s business. But
the team wasn’t complete until they brought in Chris Li, rounding out a trio that had collaborated
together in some capacity for over 6 years. Chris built a clean, scalable tech back-end to execute their
vision — and thus a company was born not for the sake of vanity but rather a need to tackle a large-
scale local, regional and global problem.

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Founders Fahim Salam, Rajib Das and Chris Li hard at work.

The problem in question is a massive freight market operating without a centralized booking system,
lacking transparency and tracking, with wasteful empty miles and without quality data to analyze and
improve the ecosystem. Loop’s centralized platform provides an asset-light solution by digitizing the
process for both shippers and carriers end-to-end, all while reducing freight costs and providing a better
user experience.

Why It’s Working

So, how does Loop implement a digital solution in an industry notorious for doing things the old-
fashioned way? With an innate understanding of their end users, Loop targets truck fleet owners as
carriers rather than independent drivers, and they have secured business with both local and
multinational corporations as shippers. By working closely with clients to transition users to digital, Loop
has been able to successfully onboard new business at an accelerated pace. For instance, within a
month, they were able to reduce the asset management cost of a feed mill client by 27% using reverse
logistics. Consequently, they’ve already shown success with agriculture, ceramics and FMCG clientele.

Here’s how they’re making it happen:

Pricing is agreed upon and honored. No wasteful negotiating.

Logistics managers and suppliers no longer need to spend time on phone-heavy coordination with
traditional transport brokers who may provide misinformation or put their own interests ahead of those
of the client. Instead, in three clicks on Loop’s platform or with the help of a Loop account manager,
shippers are directly connected with a national chain of vetted truckers.

A long chain of calls for location updates is replaced with transparent digital shipment tracking.

Truck owners can reduce deadhead costs, improve driver safety and transparency while getting paid
faster.

Business owners can avoid sinking assets into their own fleet of trucks — currently numbering 200,000
plus nationwide — that often sit idle.

Shipping managers can utilize Loop’s enterprise software for real-time reporting, analytics and increased
visibility — all contributing to better decision-making.

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A truck: So simple, yet so important in making the world work. (Photo by Teerasak Anantanon)

Loop is hyper-focused on executing according to the needs of its end-to-end users rather than pushing
for solutions that require jarring behavioral changes. This approach has resulted in some of the best
capital efficiency we’ve seen from any company in the country.

Beyond Bangladesh

A key tenet in our investment philosophy is the potential to expand beyond Bangladesh. With the
country being positioned strategically as a gateway between India and China, two of the world’s largest
economies, Loop has the ability to harness local Bangladeshi talent and resources to naturally engage in
cross-border operations.

“Loop Freight is all set to improve the Logistics Performance Index of all manufacturing and distribution
heavy countries in Asia, starting with Bangladesh. We can make it happen by having a lean and data-
driven approach to moving commercial goods.”

— Fahim Salam, Co-Founder

Expansion eastwards to Myanmar allows Loop to engage in the East-West Economic Corridor, ending up
in Vietnam and into the Pacific. Westward, India awaits. Considering Bangladesh’s import/export volume
(over US$104 billion in 2018 according to the World Bank), this is not only natural but inevitable.

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The logistics industry is surely having a moment. Seattle-based Convoy, with its asset-light approach, is
arguably Loop’s closest operational peer. In emerging markets, Kobo360 of Nigeria has demonstrated
the ability to expand across borders. Yet, in the bigger scheme of things, the world still remains as
fragmented and undigitized as ever. Even San Francisco-based Flexport (with US$1.3 billion raised) has
barely scratched the surface in a market that generates trillions in transaction value every year. An
industry as old as any, logistics is at the precipice of a global digital transformation — and the ongoing
pandemic looks to serve as the driving catalyst in getting it over the edge.
For the Next Decade

As venture investors, we understand that our relationship with companies may last five years, even a
decade. We also know that the money we invest today is just the beginning, with hopefully more rounds
to come. Knowing this, we ask ourselves: “Do we want to work with these founders for that long?” and
“Would we work for these founders ourselves?”

With Loop, the answer is a resounding yes to both.

At the end of the day, our belief at Anchorless is not only in Bangladesh, the country and its potential,
but also in Bangladeshis, the people and their abilities — about how access to expertise and capital can
empower them to build companies that solve global problems.

With Loop, the Bangladeshi star shines bright for the future of logistics.

Born into a family involved in the Bangladeshi logistics sector, Rajib grew up with an understanding of
how inefficient systems can severely impact manufacturers. Loop was conceived in part from the
challenges faced by his family business in exporting technical textiles worldwide for Fortune 500 clients
such as Nestle, Amul & Prysmian Group. He graduated with a degree in Supply Chain Management from
The University of British Columbia (Vancouver). Upon graduation, he worked as an Operations Associate
for the Port of Vancouver—one of the busiest terminals in Canad