China VC Weekly: Bodybuilding, Property Trading and more
In this week’s VC news: Xiaomi injects funds into bodybuilding course maker I-Fitness, property trader Julive rakes in 400 million yuan, European financial Giant Allianz tightens partnership with Hong Kong’s WeLab, while Xpeng Motors secures a new capital commitment from the Guangdong provincial government.
Xiaomi leads investment in bodybuilding course developer I-Fitness
One of China’s largest smartphone companies, Xiaomi, together with its affiliate venture capital fund Shunwei Capital invested in the Shanghai-based company I-Fitness. Both firms contributed more than 100 million yuan ($15 million) to its Series C round.
The company designing bodybuilder courses I-Fitness has signed up more than 40,000 instructors to its self-developed system.
During the pandemic, to strengthen its online presence, the company developed an app called Aidong Jianshen that offers various free and paid courses that learners can attend online or at a nearby gym. The app also allows users to order equipment and clothes. It is believed that Xiaomi plans to use this channel to distribute its fitness wearable products and more.
About I-Fitness
Founded in 2013, I-Fitness designs courses for bodybuilders. The startup began cooperating with gyms in Shanghai in 2018, gradually expanding to other cities. It has so far developed more than 480 programs that are being updated every three months.
Property trader Julive bags 400 million yuan in Series C+
Beijing-based property-trading startup julive.com has raised 400 million yuan ($61.5 million) in its Series C+ round led by Tencent and Oceanpine Capital, according to an announcement on its official WeChat account.
The company leverages advanced technologies like big data and cloud computing to power an online platform delivering home sales information, consulting, quality inspection of properties, and transaction services, as well as real estate market data.
In its WeChat post Julive said that in December alone, it helped sell properties worth 5 billion yuan.
About Julive
Founded in 2014, Julive has operations across 37 cities in China and claims to have facilitated property transactions for over 3 million people.
Allianz invests in Hong Kong’s WeLab
Allianz X, a venture capital arm of the European financial services giant Allianz, led a $75 million investment in Hong Kong’s WeLab, a fintech company founded in 2013. The latest Series C1, which also involved other investors, followed WeLab’s $156 million Series C round in late 2019.
The fintech firm saw its users grow by 20% year over year in 2020, bringing its accumulative user base to 50 million, according to Tech Crunch.
“Allianz saw what we did over the last couple of years and identified this very interesting opportunity to co-develop a wealth technology for digital banks, so they came to us and said, why don’t they lead the round?” co-founder and CEO Simon Loong told TechCrunch.
About Webank
WeLab Limited is a Hong Kong financial technology company offering a range of services, such as online consumer credit platforms and virtual banking.
Xpeng raises 500 million yuan from the Guangdong provincial government
Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker XPeng Motors announced on Monday it has secured funding worth 500 million yuan ($77 million) from the Guangdong provincial government.
The latest round of investment was provided by Guangdong Yuecai Investment Holdings Co., the provincial authorities’ investment arm, and will be implemented to “further accelerate the company’s business expansion,” XPeng said in a press release.
SEE ALSO: XPeng Receives 500M Yuan in Funding From Guangdong Government
“This investment from the Guangdong provincial government reinforces our commitment to driving smart EV transformation with technology and data, and to building a comprehensive EV infrastructure in the fastest-growing areas of China,” said XPeng Chairman and CEO He Xiaopeng.
About Xpeng
XPeng Motors is an intelligent electric vehicle startup founded by He Xiaopeng, a Chinese entrepreneur who also founded the Chinese mobile Internet company UCWeb. XPeng Motors is not only dedicated to serving every family with technology, but also to becoming a companion that truly understands its customers. The company recruits experts from companies such as Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Ford, Mazda, GAC Motor, Alibaba Group, Tencent, Huawei, P&G and Mi, and more.
