Online English teaching platform VIPKID received USD 200 M for Series D led by Tencent
VIPKID
Founder: Mi Wenjuan
Founded in: 2013
Financing status: RMB 1.3 billion (USD 200 million) for Series D financing in 2017
Online English teaching platform, VIPKID, received USD 200 M for Series D led by Tencent on August 24 to expand its business overseas.
Increasingly, parents in China care more about their children’s education, especially their English education. Many Chinese children are weak in their English speaking and writing due to the lack of high quality English teaching resources, including teachers and teaching materials. Yesterday, Chinese tech giant, Tencent, led online English teaching platform VIPKID’s Series D round, in what is proving to be the largest single financing round in the online English education industry.
VIPKID is an online English teaching platform that focuses on providing 4-12 year-old children with online English education services through one-to-one online video streaming. It recruits professional English teachers from foreign countries where English is the first language, and connects them with Chinese students who are willing to pay for its one-to-one English teaching services. VIPKID fills an interesting niche that helps English teachers make a little extra money.
Founded in 2013 in Beijing, VIPKID said that it has more than 20,000 teachers delivering lessons to 200,000 students from 32 countries. Additionally, its monthly revenue in July this year was USD 60 million, with USD 750 million in annual revenue. Currently, it is trying to deliver Chinese teaching services for foreign students in the same mode, as it is much easier to recruit, manage, and operate Chinese teachers in China.
This new financing round was led by Tencent, with YF Capital, Matrix Partners China, ZhenFund, and other existing investors participating. The capital will be used to invest in the development of technologies to boost its online English teaching business, as well as expand its business overseas by providing foreign students with Chinese teaching services.
Automobile circulation service platform Maihaoche received USD 30 M for Series B
Maihaoche
Founder: Li Yanzhu
Founded in: 2014
Financing status: RMB 200 million (USD 30 million) for Series B financing in 2017
Automobile circulation service platform, Maihaoche, received USD 30 M for Series B on August 23 to boost its business in the automobile industry.
Maihaoche is a automobile circulation service platform that combines online car sales services with car financing services on its platform. It is dedicated to providing car dealers with a one-stop solution to the problem of automobile supply, funding, and circulation. It is working with dealers to facilitate their operational efficiency and profitability by improving information flow, fund flow, and logistical efficiency.
Founded in 2014 in Hangzhou, it has so far formed partnerships with more than 80,000 automobile dealers in China, and its services have covered all cities in China. Additionally, it currently has over 100,000 automobiles available on its platform for high-efficiency circulation.
This new financing round was led by Northern Light Venture Capital, with existing investor LB Investment participating. The capital will be used to boost its business by improving its automobile circulation efficiency, as well as invest in the research and development of technologies to reduce the cost of trading.
(Top photo from 58pic.com)
