Online classified listings operator 58.com has agreed to sell part of its stake in China-based automotive marketplace operator Chehaoduo to an unnamed third-party investor for more than $713m.
The corporate did not identify the purchasing investor, but it released the news on the same day as Chehaoduo secured $1.5bn in funding from SoftBank Vision Fund, which is managed by telecommunications conglomerate SoftBank.
The transaction is subject to unspecified closing conditions. 58.com will continue to own a minority shareholding in Chehaoduo once the deal closes.
Chehaoduo was spun out of classified marketplace Ganji in 2015 and runs two distinct offerings: second-hand vehicle auction and trading platform Guazi and after-sales services platform Maodou.
58.com owned a 46% stake in Chehaoduo ahead of its spinoff, following the corporate’s acquisition of Ganji earlier in 2015. It has not revealed the size of its stake after the share sale.
Chehaoduo has raised more than $3.3bn in equity funding to date, including $162m in series C-plus funding in October 2018 from Tiantu Capital, DST Global, Nuoweiqi VC and CKE.
The series C-plus round was raised alongside $430m of financing from Kunshan’s municipal government, though it remains unclear what form that cash injection took.
Internet group Tencent led an $818m series C round for Chehaoduo in March 2018 that also featured Shougang Fund, an investment arm of steel manufacturer Shougang, as well as financial services provider ICBC International and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC.
The original series C tranche also included Yunfeng Capital, FountainVest Partners, IDG Capital, Taihe Capital, Sequoia Capital China, H Capital, DST, Capital Today and Shanhang Capital Investment.
Jingxin Venture Capital, an investment firm backed by Shougang, took part in the company’s $400m series B round in 2017 together with financial services firm China Merchants Bank’s CMB International division, H Capital, Dragoneer Investment Group, Matrix Partners China and BlueRun Ventures.
Chehaoduo’s backers also include GX Capital, Hike Capital, Welight Capital, StarAngelFund.
