Royal Mail has expanded its same-day delivery offering with the acquisition of eCourier, a firm that operates in that sector and mainly focuses on the Greater London area. 

This represents part of Royal Mail's ongoing plan to enhance its parcel offerings and expand its network to capture more value in the fastest-growing segments of the parcel market. 

By combining eCourier with Royal Mail Sameday - the national carrier's existing courier business - the company hopes to establish itself as the leading player in same-day delivery. 

The main shareholder and chief executive officer of eCourier Ian Oliver will remain in his role - having helped his firm generate £19 million of revenue in 2014-15. 

Royal Mail chief executive Moya Greene said this development "marks another milestone in our strategic objective of increasing our presence in growth areas of the parcels market".

"Same-day deliveries are already one of the fastest-growing segments of the UK parcels market."