China-based online news platform 36Kr Media has raised RMB300m ($45.4m) in a series A round that included streaming service Baidu Video and advertising agency Focus Media Information Technology, China Money Network reported yesterday.
The round was co-led by venture capital firm Gobi Partners and investment firm China Prosperity Capital, and also featured Hangzhou Finance Investment, an investment firm owned by the government of Chinese city Hangzhou.
36Kr Media was spun out of technology group 36Kr in 2016. The company, which operates a news portal focused on the VC and technology ecosystems, and organises industry events, is 36kr’s oldest offering.
Founded in 2011 as a technology blog, 36Kr has set up a range of units and spinouts that focus on areas such as crowdfunding, VC investments and co-working spaces. The latter business, Kr Space, raised $15m in September 2017.
Michael Zhu, managing partner at Gobi Partners, said: “In the mobile internet era, the cost and barrier for spreading content is nearly zero, so the content is the most important part for a media company.
“36Kr Media provides high-quality content of China’s technology, and has become a mainstream online technology media. At the same time, 36Kr is developing an ecosystem of venture capital services, and Gobi is optimistic about 36Kr’s future of becoming an integrated services provider in the venture capital field.”