TORONTO, Ont. – Highlight Motor Group has received a $55 million funding boost from private equity firm Credit Mutuel Equity.

Credit Mutuel Equity is the North American private equity arm of French banking group, Credit Mutuel Alliance Federale. The company says it will be an “influential minority shareholder” and will help Highlight Motor Freight achieve its continued growth.

“Our company is growing rapidly and we welcome a leading minority shareholder,” said Kirk Kalinitchenko, president and CEO of Highlight Motor Group. “It was important for us to join forces with a reliable investor who shared our long-term vision, and this partnership will allow us to accelerate our expansion in North America. In this project, Credit Mutuel Equity has demonstrated a real understanding of our strategy of serving customers by offering undeniable quality, while sharing the large Highlight Motor family’s passion for our business.”

“Kirk founded HMG at the age of 25, starting out in the transportation industry as a driver/owner-operator of a single truck. His dedication, field experience and leadership have enabled HMG to become a dominant player in the North American transportation and logistics market over the past decade, with the strongest growth in Canada according to the Profit 500 ranking,” added David Dickel, managing director of Credit Mutuel Equity in Canada.