NLVC leads round for China-based English learning platform
Northern Light Venture Capital (NLVC) has led a $20 million Series B round of funding for VIPKID, a China-based English-language learning platform that targets primary and secondary school students.
Matrix China Partners, Innovation Works and Sequoia Capital also participated in the round.
VIPKID is a distance English-learning platform. The teachers, all of whom have experience in US primary schools, provide one-to-one online tuition to Chinese students.
The start-up received RMB3 million ($473,000) in seed funding from Innovation Works in 2013. Last year, Matrix and Sequoia contributed $5 million in a Series A round of funding alongside Innovation Works.
The new capital will be used to recruit more teachers from the US, develop academic curricula, and improve user experience, Wenjuan Mi, founder and CEO of the company, told Tencent's QQ News.
Earlier this year, 51Talk.com, a Chinese online English-learning platform backed by several VC investors including Shunwei Capital Partners, acquired industry peer 91Waijiao.com. Last year, Alibaba Group, Temasek Holdings, SBI Group and existing backer Qiming Venture Partners invested $100 million in a Series B round of funding for TutorGroup, another English learning services provider.
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