Search engine provider Baidu has acquired a controlling stake in Brazil-based daily deals website Peixe Urbano for an undisclosed amount, Techweb reported on Friday.
Founded in 2009, Peixe Urbano is an online deals provider that runs a similar service to the one provided by Groupon, and has accumulated more than 25 million users.
The funding will further support Baidu’s expansion into Latin America. The Peixe Urbano team will operate autonomously within Baidu’s corporate structure.
Peixe Urbano has raised an undisclosed amount across three rounds. Venture capital firms Benchmark Capital and Monashees Capital backed the company in January 2011. Peixe then received “significant growth capital” from private equity firms General Atlantic and Tiger Global Management four months later.
Morgan Stanley Investment Management and T.Rowe Price invested in the company in 2012.