Zilingo acquires software company nCinga Innovations for $15.5 million

Zilingo enters into co-operation with nCinga Innovations

Leading technology platform Zilingo has bolstered its position as a global digital supply chain enabler by acquiring Sri Lanka-based software company nCinga Innovations. The acquisition is touted to be one of the largest tech exits in Sri Lanka in recent times. The deal marks a major win for the region’s startup ecosystem.

The acquisition will drive the adoption of the Manufacturing Execution System (MES) software across Zilingo’s global network of 6,000 factories and 75,000 businesses, enabling access to previously untapped markets. An addition to Zilingo’s powerful technology stack, the MES software automates operations on the factory floor by enabling access to real-time data on the go.

The global impact of Zilingo’s supply chain technology

Fashion is an over-$3 trillion industry, in which a majority of retailers struggle with meeting consumer demand for fast, on-trend, and responsibly produced products due to inefficiencies and information asymmetry. To address this, Zilingo has created a full-stack technology platform that makes the supply chain fair, transparent, and connected. The acquisition will bring added features to the company’s customers in the United States, Europe, and Australia, where brands traditionally lack transparency over supply chain, and manufacturing processes.

“What excited us about the nCinga product was their ability to dramatically improve efficiency and drive insights by digitising the shop floor – we have partnered with them for a long time and their work has been crucial to our mission of creating a transparent, sustainable, economically viable, and socially responsible apparel supply chain,” said Ankiti Bose, co-founder and CEO of Zilingo, about the acquisition.

Zilingo to bring digitisation opportunity to global manufacturing hubs like Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, and Indonesia

Zilingo plans to leverage its global manufacturing network to increase software distribution – specifically for core fashion manufacturing markets such as Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and Turkey.

“We at nCinga are very inspired by Zilingo’s vision. Both the teams align on shared values and a global ambition to make the fashion and apparel industry fair, transparent, and efficient, we hope to do great things together," said Imal Kalutotage, CEO of nCinga Innovations.

The company now looks to Vietnam as well as other key Asian markets as part of its growth strategy to expand its B2B business. In late October, Zilingo connected with the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) to bring digitisation to Vietnamese factories as well as to maintain their position as major players in the fashion industry.

"As we scale our presence in Vietnam, we look forward to leveraging our platform to bring more Vietnamese factories into the digital age while connecting Vietnamese sourcing to global fashion brands in the West. The role of technology should be used to create inclusive growth. With Zilingo's suite of tools and services, fashion businesses will be better equipped to compete in a global marketplace," said Cian O'Dowd, head of expansion, Zilingo.

Zilingo is a technology platform that powers the entire fashion supply chain. It was founded in 2015 by Ankiti Bose and Dhruv Kapoor with a vision to use technology to put responsible and efficient business within everyone’s reach.

nCinga believes in the power of data and recognises that the availability, visibility, usability, manageability, and reliability of data is of utmost importance to realise its power. As such, nCinga has put forth a platform where organisational data can be collected, integrated, connected, searched, visualised, and analysed all in real-time.