MercadoLibre Inc., the operator of leading online marketplaces in 13 countries across South America, has acquired Axado, a Brazilian shipping and logistics technology firm for R$26 million (US$7.6 million).

MercadoLibre (spelled MercadoLivre in its native Portuguese), says the Axado purchase will help it expand its logistics business and provide more services to sellers on its marketplaces. MercadoLibre says more than 2,500 e-retailers use Axado’s services. Axado, on its website, names sporting goods retailer Decathlon, No. 245 in the Internet Retailer 2016 Latin America 500, and apparel retailer Marisa Lojas (No. 174) among its clients.

The Axado purchase follows MercadoLibre’s R$50 million (US$14.5 million at today’s exchange rate) purchase of a controlling stake in KPL Solutions last year. KPL provides ERP and back-office technology for e-commerce companies in Brazil. In the first quarter, MercadoLibre purchased Argentine software development company Monits.

As of March 31, MercadoLibre says it has 151.5 million registered users, up 19.6% from 126.7 million a year earlier. The gross merchandise volume sold across its sites during the first quarter was $1.78 billion. Read more on MercadoLibre and the challenges of Latin American e-commerce in the Internet Retailer magazine story “Latin America’s leader looks ahead.”