Raffles Capital (RAF)

Shares / Stock Code

RAF

Stock Exchange / Sharemarket

ax

Raffles Capital formerly Freight Links Express Holdings Limited, is an Australia-based company. Freight Links Group is one of the leading international total logistics solution providers in Singapore. Since their establishment in 1981, the international freight forwarding business has reached over 600 destinations throughout the world. Apart from strong strategic partnerships with over 120 freight forwarding agents worldwide, they have overseas offices located in Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong and China. Investors can trade shares on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX).

In Singapore, their warehousing facilities occupy a total gross floor area of over 2 million square feet. They have extensive experience in storing and forwarding all types of cargo, from small parcels to massive plant machinery, exhibition displays and archival documents. The company's comprehensive array of logistics services includes inventory control management, warehousing and distribution, container and conventional transportation, freight forwarding and container freight station operations.

Freight Links Express was founded on 9 January 1981. It has since grown strategically to become an international and integrated logistics services provider. The company was initially formed to meet the needs of the market in terms of shipping LCL (Less than Container Load) cargo. In 1982, Freight Links Express established Crystal Freight Services to further address the needs of small organizations in their international freight requirements, and also Freight Links Express (Malaysia) to expand its regional network.

Continuing with its strategic expansion into the regional market, Freight Links Express (Thailand) and Freight Links Express (Penang) were introduced in 1986 to extend the services that the company offered within the region. In the same year, Freight Links Express Investment Holdings Pte Ltd (FLE Investment Holdings Pte Ltd) was set up to consolidate and simplify the ownership of the various associate companies that were offering freight forwarding services under the name of "Freight Links Express" throughout the ASEAN region.

Besides offering a comprehensive range of freight forwarding services at various international destinations, Freight Links became the first freight forwarder in Singapore to provide logistics and freight forwarding services with the formation of Freight Links Express Distripark (FLED) in 1989. With the construction of FLED's first warehouse in 1990, a greater level of integration between the logistics and freight forwarding industries was achieved.

The Group’s regional expansion continued with the set up of Freight Links M&S (Hong Kong) in 1993 to capitalise on the growing opportunities in the logistics industry and the region's economic boom in the early 1990's. In 1995, Freight Links Group was listed on the Singapore Exchange to raise funds to further support its warehouse development and strategic expansions. A total of over S$5 million was raised in this successful listing exercise.

Hot on the heels of a successful listing, the Group developed the ASRS (Automated Storage and Retrieval System) warehouse and a highly responsive customer service team to form Freight Links Archivers in 1997. The Group also ventured into the budding MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Conference & Exhibition) industry with the establishment of Freight Links Express Expologistics Pte Ltd, which has since grown from strength to strength to offer a full range of marketing, events and exhibitions services which is currently known as FLEx Integrated Marketing.

In 2004, Freight Links Group acquired LTH Logisitics, which offers a full range of chemical logistics solutions. Leveraging on the international network and warehousing expertise of the Freight Links Group, LTH Logistics constructed a Dangerous Goods (DG) Warehouse Complex to ride on the increasing growth in the chemical logistics industry in Singapore.

Freight Links Group has also strengthened its core business by taking a strategic 20% stake in the shareholding of Freight Management Holdings Berhad (FMHB), a leading international freight service provider in Malaysia, in 2006. The strategic alliance generated benefits and synergies for both companies as Freight Links Group combined its key competitive strengths with FMHB to seize the impending business opportunities in the Asia Pacific region.

To tap into the fast growing logistics and transportation market along the Yangtze River in China, it has formed a joint venture with Jiangyin Haigang International Logistics Ltd, a subsidiary of Jiangyin Port Authority, in 2006. Apart from tapping on the growing demand for bonded warehousing services in Jiangsu province, the joint-venture also enabled the Freight Links Group to cast a wider net in the Chinese market and provides a foothold for the Group to venture into other booming markets in China.

Freight Links also made significant inroads into the Middle East market. The Group extended its freight forwarding (MFL Logistics L.L.C.), marketing, events and exhibitions services (FLEX Dubai) to the region through joint venture agreements in Dubai.