Goldman leads $36m round for Korean food-ordering platform

Baedal Minjok - the name translates into English as "Delivery Nation" - will use the new funds to upgrade its technology, improve customer experience, and expand overseas.

The service launched in June 2010 and has since accumulated 140,000 customer restaurants nationwide. It processes more than four million orders per month. As of October, the Baedal Minjok mobile app had been downloaded in excess of 14 million times, equivalent to more than half of Korea's population of 15-49 year-olds. Over 99% of orders are placed via mobile devices.

The platform allows diners to find nearby restaurants that offer delivery services, browse menus and prices, place orders and make payments. They are also able to upload pictures and post reviews of restaurants. Meanwhile, restaurant owners use Baedal Minjok as a marketing channel.

Earlier this year, Woowa announced a joint venture with Line Corporation - operator of the eponymous messaging app, which has more than 54 million users in Japan - to offer food delivery services to Japanese diners. Tokyo-based consumers can now order premium lunchboxes from selected restaurants.

"Korea is one of the most attractive e-commerce markets in the world," Stephanie Hui, head of Asia ex-Japan private equity at Goldman Sachs, said in a statement. "This investment in Baedal Minjok's innovation and talented management team exemplifies Goldman Sachs' aim to partner with Korean corporate leaders who are able to expand globally."

Goldman previously invested in Seamless, a US-based food ordering platform that merged with rival GrubHub in 2013. The combined entity went public later the same year, raising $192 million. Goldman sold some shares via the IPO but retains an interest in GrubHub.

According to AVCJ Research, this is Woowa's fourth round of funding. BonAngels Venture Partners provided the Series A in 2011 and then IMM Investment, Stonebridge Capital and Altos Ventures Korea committed KRW2 billion the following year. CyberAgent Ventures joined the Series B investors in a third round of funding worth around $11 million earlier this year.

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• Topics
• Expansion
• Technology
• North Asia
• Consumer
• Goldman Sachs
• South Korea
• TMT
• Consumer
• Growth capital