Legend leads $18m round for Chinese book publisher
China-focused Legend Capital has led a RMB128 million ($18 million) Series A round for Dook Book, a Shanghai-based book publisher that also has digital media and film operations.
The round – in which domestic investors Zhihe Capital and Neixiang Fund also participated – reportedly gives the company a post-money valuation of RMB2 billion. The fresh capital will be used to create intellectual property (IP), purchase publishing rights from third-party content developers, and add more members to Dook Book's existing 133-strong team.
Founded in 2006, Dook Book publishes an array of books featuring fictional and factual content for adults and children. It claims to publish at least one bestselling book - with sales exceeding one million units - every year. The company has also expanded into digital publishing, new media, movie investments and IP development.
Zhenxing Shao, a managing director at Legend, said that Dook Book has built strong relationships with leading Chinese authors over the past 11 years, which has contributed to its high-quality literature content and IP. The GP will help the company deploy this IP into movies, TV series and online games.
Recent investment activity in this space includes a $117 million round for online reading business Zongheng Literature, led by Sequoia Capital China and Perfect World, the company's ultimate parent.
Legend closed its seventh VC fund at $448 million in April. The vehicle is smaller than the firm’s previous vehicle – which raised $500 million in about five months – and spent longer in the market.
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