Chinese social e-commerce site Beidian bags $126m funding

Photo by li tzuni on Unsplash

By Chalida Ekvitthayavechnukul

May 10, 2019

Chinese e-commerce site Beidian has secured 860 million yuan ($126 million) from a group of heavyweight investors including Hillhouse Capital and Sequoia Capital.

Other investors in the round include Xiang He Capital, Sinovation Ventures, IDG Capital and Capital Today, according to an announcement on Sinovation Ventures’ WeChat page on Thursday.

The proceeds will be used for upgrading its supply chain experience and building infrastructure to create a social retail community.

Beidian was set up in August 2017 as an online distribution channel for Chinese maternal and child care conglomerate Beibei Group.

Beidian is different from traditional e-commerce sites like Taobao and JD as it focuses on social commerce, which allows users to buy, sell and share products in the group. It also gives importance to improve the three-way connection among consumers, shopkeepers and suppliers.

Beidian claims the number of members in the store has exceeded 50 million since the beginning of 2019.

Yunji, another social e-commerce market player from China, filed for an initial public offering in the US last month, aiming to raise up to $200 million.

Also read:

Chinese e-commerce platform Yunji files for US IPO

HNA Technology scraps plan to buy Chinese e-commerce firm Dangdang

 

Singapore Reporter/s

In Singapore, we are looking to double our reporting team by this year-end to comprehensively cover the fast-moving world of funded startups and VC, PE & M&A deals. We want reporters who can tell our readers what is really happening in these sectors and why it matters to markets, companies and consumers. The ability to write precisely and urgently is crucial for these roles. Ideal candidates must have to ability to work in a collaborative, dynamic, and fast-changing environment. We want our new hires to be digitally savvy and ready to experiment with new forms of storytelling. Most importantly, we are looking for hard-hitting reporters who work well in a team. Collaboration and collegiality are a must.

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).   

  • A reporter to track companies/startups that have raised private capital, and have the potential to become unicorns. SEA currently has over 40 companies with a valuation of over $100 million and under $1 billion.
  • A reporter who can get behind the scenes and reveal how funding rounds are put together, or why they’ve failed to materialise. She/he in this role will largely focus on long-format stories. 
  • A journalist to track special situations funds, distressed debt and private credit (from the PE angle) across Asia.
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Singapore Reporter/s

In Singapore, we are looking to double our reporting team by this year-end to comprehensively cover the fast-moving world of funded startups and VC, PE & M&A deals. We want reporters who can tell our readers what is really happening in these sectors and why it matters to markets, companies and consumers. The ability to write precisely and urgently is crucial for these roles. Ideal candidates must have to ability to work in a collaborative, dynamic, and fast-changing environment. We want our new hires to be digitally savvy and ready to experiment with new forms of storytelling. Most importantly, we are looking for hard-hitting reporters who work well in a team. Collaboration and collegiality are a must.

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).   

  • A reporter to track companies/startups that have raised private capital, and have the potential to become unicorns. SEA currently has over 40 companies with a valuation of over $100 million and under $1 billion.
  • A reporter who can get behind the scenes and reveal how funding rounds are put together, or why they’ve failed to materialise. She/he in this role will largely focus on long-format stories. 
  • A journalist to track special situations funds, distressed debt and private credit (from the PE angle) across Asia.
APPLY NOW