Tencent injects $150m into China's VIPKid

The company did not disclose the size of the investment, but The Wall Street Journal previously reported it was $150 million. AVCJ has verified the figure with a source familiar with the situation. It has also been reported - though not confirmed - that VIPKid originally planned to raise up to $500 million at a $4.5 billion valuation.

Founded in 2013 and launched the following year, VIPKid offers one-to-one online English oral courses by connecting some 70,000 English native speakers in the US with 600,000 students in China. It applies emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence to assess students' English competence, match them with appropriate teachers, and provide tailor-made content.

A report published by the Chinese Academy of Sciences last year said that three companies accounted for 80% of the country's online English learning market; VIPKid's share was 55%. The other two providers are 51Talk - which has received VC funding - and VipJr.

In June 2018, VIPKid received a $500 million funding round led by Sequoia Capital China, Tencent, Yunfeng Capital, and Coatue Management. Billed as a Series D-plus round, it was said to be the largest round raised in the education technology sector globally. The initial tranche of the Series D was worth $200 million and closed in 2017.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• Consumer
• Technology
• Expansion
• China
• TMT
• Tencent
• Sequoia Capital
• Yunfeng Capital
• Coatue Management
• Matrix Partners
• ZhenFund