Chinese Investments: Many of India’s top startups including Hike, Paytm, Dream11, and Zomato derived their primary costs and investments from some big Chinese business sharks. All these companies are likely to face graduality in raising funds. The reason behind this is the government’s orders to have its approval on any transaction with the world’s second-largest economy.
Many small companies on the lines of growth are also likely to face a lot of difficulties. Most of these were on terms with the Chinese investors for a new series of investments. These financial back-ups might become very complex to execute. The founders, analysts, and lawyers also indicate the loss of trade for these start-ups.
In these days, China had become one of the largest financial backers in the country. It had helped a lot in the country’s fast-growing digital economy. It had also surpassed the USA in this list. It had funded many popular startup unicorns. Some of them are discussed further.
| Indian Unicorns with Chinese Investments | ||
| Indian Startups(use logos instead of name) | Total (Disclosed) Funding Raised So Far | Lead Chinese Investors on Board |
| BigBasket | $1.1B | TR Capital, Alibaba Group |
| Byju’s | $1.5B | Tencent Holdings, General Atlantic |
| Dream11 | $934.6M | Fosun International |
| Delhivery | $100M | Tencent Holdings |
| Hike | $261M | Tencent Holdings |
| Flipkart | $7.7B | Steadview Capital and Tencent Holdings |
| MakemyTrip | $180M | Ctrip |
| Ola | $3.8B | China Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund, Sailing Capital, and Tencent Holdings |
| Oyo | $3.2B | Didi Chuxing and China Lodging Group |
| Paytm | INR 2.2B | Alibaba Group |
| Paytm mall | $795M | Alibaba Group |
| Policybazaar | $496.6M | Tencent Holdings |
| Quikr | $424.2M | Steadview Capital |
| Rivigo | $257M | SAIF Partners |
| Snapdeal | $1.8B | Alibaba Group and Foxconn |
| Swiggy | $1.6B | Meituan Dianping, Tencent Holdings, and SAIF Partners |
| Udaan | $899.9M | Tencent Holdings |
| Zomato | $914.6M | Alibaba Group and Shunwei Capital |
BigBasket – Chinese Investments
About the company: It started as a door-to-door grocery service. Eventually, it became the best online grocery store. It started its services in October 2011. Its headquarters are based in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
The Chinese share and investment: BigBasket has raised a funding of $1.1B over 16 rounds. It received a funding of $51.8M from two lead investors including Alibaba Group. It cultivated the funding from the Chinese giant through Debt Financing. Another lead Chinese financer is TR Capital.
Byju’s
About the company: Popularly known as Byju’s-the learning app. This tech unicorn serves in the sphere of providing online education. It is the common brand name for Think and Learn Pvt. Ltd. It was founded by Byju Raveendran on 30th November 2011. It was the most valued ed-tech company in March 2019. Its headquarters are located in Bengaluru.
The Chinese share and investment: Byju’s is known to furnish a total funding amount of $1.5B for itself. Tencent Holdings funds the company with $40M in August 2017 alone. It also participates in one more private equity funding with General Atlantic. Together they fund $31M on March 22, 2019.
Chinese Investments – Dream11
About the company: It is a fantasy sports platform founded in 2012. It allows its users to play fantasy cricket, football, hockey, kabaddi, and basketball. It became the first Indian Gaming company to be a part of the ‘Unicorn Club’, in April 2019. Its headquarters are located in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
The Chinese share and investment: It is known to raise a total funding amount of $100M. The major funding round was played by Tencent Holdings. Being their lead investor, it funded $100M on September 6, 2018.
Delhivery
About the company: It is a supply chain service provider. It is encompassing over more than 18,000 pin codes in India. It was founded in 2011 with its headquarters in Gurugram, Haryana.
The Chinese share and investment: It is known to raise a total funding amount of $934.6M. Fosun International is one of its leading financiers. It funded $30M on May 22, 2017.
Hike
About the company: Hike, popularly known as Hike Messenger, or Hike Sticker chat. It is a freeware, cross-platform instant messaging app based in India. It also supports Voice over IP. It was founded on December 12, 2012, by Kavin Bharti Mittal.
The Chinese share and investment: Hike is known to furnish a total funding amount of $261M. It has 4 lead investors including Tencent Holdings.
Flipkart
About the company: It is an e-commerce service company based in India. Its headquarters are situated in Bangalore, Karnataka. It was founded by Binny Bansal and Sachin Bansal in 2007.
The Chinese share and investment: Flipkart is known to furnish a total funding amount of $7.7B. The lead Chinese investors with the company’s backings are Steadview Capital and Tencent Holdings. However, there is no information on their recent fundings.
MakeMyTrip
About the company: It is an online travel company based in India. MakeMyTrip limited was founded in 2000. Its headquarters are located in Gurugram, Haryana. The company specializes in providing travel services. These services include flight tickets, hotel reservations, train, and bus tickets. The company also provides domestic and international holiday packages.
The Chinese share and investment: The lead Chinese investor on board is Ctrip. It made a funding of $180M on January 8, 2016.
Ola
About the company: It is popularly known as Ola Cabs. It is a company that provides ridesharing services in India. These services include peer-to-peer ridesharing, ride service hailing, taxi, and food delivery. Its headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka. It was developed by ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd. in December 2010.
The Chinese share and investment: The company raised a total funding amount of $3.8B. Its lead investors are China Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund, Sailing Capital, and Tencent Holdings.
OYO
About the company: It is one of the biggest hospitality service chains in India. It works with leased and franchised hotels. It was founded in 2013 by Ritesh Agarwal. It included only budget hotels at first. Now, it has business with more than 90% of the hotels in India. Its headquarters are located in Gurugram.
The Chinese share and investment: It received a total funding amount of $3.2B. Its major Chinese investors are Didi Chuxing and China Lodging Group.
PayTM & PayTM Mall
About the company: It is an Indian e-wallet, payment, and e-commerce service. Its headquarters are situated in Noida. It was founded in August 2010 by Vijay Shekhar Sharma.
The Chinese share and investment: PayTM is known to furnish a total funding amount of 2.2B Rupees. Its lead financers are Alibaba Group.
On the other hand, PayTM Mall is known to furnish $795M. Alibaba Group is its lead Chinese Financer.
PolicyBazaar
About the company: It serves as an insurance aggregator and a global financial technology startup in India. Its headquarters are located in Gurugram, Haryana. It was founded by Yashish Dahiya in June 2008.
The Chinese share and investment: The company raised a funding amount of $496.6M. Tencent Holdings is its lead Chinese investor.
Quikr
About the company: It is a classified advertising platform. It serves as an online marketplace for new and used goods. It was founded in 2008 with its headquarters in Bengaluru.
The Chinese share and investment: The company is known to furnish a funding amount of $424.2M. Its leading Chinese financer is Steadview Capital.
Rivigo
About the Company: It is the largest and fastest cargo service in India. It also has the largest serviceability. It was founded in 2014. Its headquarters are in Gurugram, Haryana.
The Chinese share and investment: It furnished a total funding amount of $257M. SAIF Partners is its leading investor.
Snapdeal
About the company: It is an e-commerce website headquartered in New Delhi. It was founded by Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal in February 2010.
The Chinese share and investment: The company raised a total funding amount of $1.8B. Its leading Chinese investors are Alibaba Group and Foxconn.
Swiggy
About the company: Swiggy is an online food delivery platform. It was founded by Sriharsha Majety in 2014. Its headquarters are in Bengaluru.
The Chinese share and investment: The company’s total funding amount is $1.6B. Its leading Chinese investors are Meituan Dianping, Tencent Holdings, and SAIF Partners.
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Udaan
About the company: It is a network-centric trade platform, in the B2B format. It brings traders, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers under one roof. It was founded in 2016.
The Chinese share and investment: It raised a total funding amount of $899.9M. Its leading Chinese financer is Tencent Holdings.
Zomato
About the app: It is a door-to-door food delivery and dine out service. It was founded in 2008 by Deepinder Goyal, Gaurav Gupta, and Pankaj Chaddah. Its headquarters are based in Gurgaon, Haryana.The Chinese share and investment: The company furnished a total funding amount of $914.6M. The leading Chinese financiers backing the company are Alibaba Group and Shunwei Capital.
