Bpost enters ecommerce US market with Radial

The transaction gives Bpost all of the shares of Radial, including debt. Radial has recruited J.P. Morgan Securities as a financial advisor for this transaction.

Bpost already has an international division, Landmark Global, a company that caters to online sellers, helping them achieve a global reach. Via Radial, Bpost has just stepped across the Atlantic, getting access to the USD 300 billion US ecommerce market, projected to surpass USD 485 billion USD by 2021.

The Belgian Post, La Régie des Postes, created in 1830, became in 1992 La Poste, a new name that marked the end of state intervention. From the late 1990’s to 2010’s, the European postal market was progressively getting liberalized amidst the challenges posed by the development of new disrupting IT technologies such as mobile phones (SMS) and e-mailing.

With over 25,000 employees and a EUR 2.43 billion turnover in 2015, Bpost is one of the largest employers in Belgium, and a big contributor to the nation’s economy. Bpost is the leading Belgian postal operator and an integral part of social life in Belgium.

Radial was known as eBay Enterprise from 2011 until 2015. Accounting for 20% of all ecommerce orders flowing between Europe and the US, Radial is Amazon’s biggest competitor in terms of logistics. In 2016, Radial provided logistics (fulfillment) of more than 300 million parts for its retail customers, through its 24 fulfillment centers, and, for 2017, Radial’s annual revenue is expected to be in the range of USD 970 million to USD 1.02 billion.