China's HNA to invest $184m in Le Sports Series B round
Chinese conglomerate HNA Group has agreed to invest RMB1.2 billion ($184 million) in Le Sports, a unit of LeTV Holdings, as part of a Series B funding round for the company.
According to a filing, Le Sports is seeking to raise RMB7 billion ($1 billion) at a post-funding valuation of RMB20.5 billion. HNA will invest to this round via an investment fund advised by its corporate PE arm HNA Capital. Shenzhen-listed Hna-Caissa Travel, a publicly-traded subsidiary of HNA Group, committed RMB600 million in the fund.
Upon completion of the transaction, HNA will hold a 5.85% stake in Le Sports.
Le Sports covers the entire value chain of sport business from event operation to content distribution. It owns broadcast and media rights for over 200 sports events covering 10,000 matches. It is also involved in program production across different sports events including football, basketball, tennis and golfs.
In May of last year, Le Sports raised a RMB800 million Series A round led by Yunfeng Capital and Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group, which valued the business at RMB2.9 billion. Shenzhen Fortune Link and Prometheus Capital, a PE fund set up by the son of Jianlin Wang, Wanda's chairman, also participated alongside several high-net-worth individuals.
Le Sports recorded an operating income of RMB417 million for the 12 months ended December 2015, the filing said.
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