Vietnamese smart mobility startup Selex Motors JSC has raised US$2.1 million in a seed funding round led by Touchstone Partners.
ADB Ventures, the venture investment arm of the Asian Development Bank, and Korean VC firm Nextrans also participated.
A press note said Selex will use the proceeds to expand its R&D operations, strengthen the in-house manufacturing capacity of vehicles and battery packs at its new factory in the Hanoi area, and start deployment with early customers.
With its new production facility established, the company also plans to expand into other Southeast Asian countries.
Selex was founded in 2018 by CEO Nguyen Nguyen, Chief Mechanical Engineer Hai Nguyen, and Chief Software Engineer Quang Nguyen. It owns patented technologies to develop and manufacture smart electric motorcycles (EMs), battery packs, and swapping systems.
The startup taps into the underserved B2B market (particularly the last-mile delivery for the logistics sector) with its environmentally friendly and cost-effective solutions.
Also read: The growth of electric vehicles is saving the planet, one trip at a time
The EMs, purpose-built to serve the logistics sector, can transport heavier and bulkier loads than passenger bikes converted for the function. They are equipped with proprietary IoT technology and modern fleet management capabilities to improve productivity further.
Selex claims it offers the products at competitive prices and helps in significant cost savings, including 50 per cent maintenance costs and 25 per cent on fuel costs.
The company has electrified delivery fleets and set up battery swap points for delivery giants such as Viettel Post (a leading parcel courier in Vietnam) and Lazada Logistics (a logistics arm of e-commerce giant Lazada).
According to the National Traffic Safety Committee, Vietnam is home to roughly 50 million motorbikes. It is regarded as the fourth-largest motorbike market globally (behind China, India, and Indonesia).
Each year, these motorbikes burn approximately US$5 billion worth of gasoline and contribute half of the vehicular carbon emissions.
“There are few larger or more urgent challenges facing the world today than climate change, and Selex has identified an unserved and growing market where it can make an impact,” said Tu Ngo, general partner at Touchstone Partners.
Bloomberg reported that the global EV market will total more than 90 million vehicles by 2030, while vehicle ownership of all types across Southeast Asia is predicted to grow more than 40 per cent by 2040.
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Image Credit: Selex Motors
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