Telecommunications and internet group SoftBank agreed yesterday to invest $2bn in South Korea-based e-commerce platform Coupang through its Vision Fund, at a valuation reported by Forbes to be $9bn.
Coupang operates an online marketplace that lists more than 120 million products for sale, 4 million of which are available for one-day delivery through Rocket, its end-to-end fulfilment system, which delivers some 1 million parcels each day.
The company has more than doubled its revenue in the past two years and expects to record a total of $5bn in sales in 2018, though Forbes reports that its losses have also risen significantly since 2014.
The funding will support a strengthening of Coupang’s technology capabilities, as it looks to further cut delivery times while introducing features such as an artificial intelligence-equipped product recommendation system and a one-touch payment option.
SoftBank had already paid $1bn for a reported 20% stake in Coupang in a 2015 deal that increased the company’s funding to $1.5bn altogether.
Bom Kim, Coupang’s chief executive, said: “We are confident this investment will allow us to leverage the platforms we have created in logistics, payments and data to make e-commerce and other innovations even more indispensable to our customers.”
Lydia Jett, the partner at SoftBank Investment Advisers that also sits on Coupang’s board of directors, added: “Coupang seeks to have a revolutionary technology platform and uncompromising focus on customer delight.
“We believe the company is well-positioned to lead the Korean e-commerce market, with significant platform opportunities ahead given its data, payments and logistics advantage.”
The company’s earlier investors include Greenoaks Capital Management, LaunchTime and Rose Park Advisors’ Disruptive Innovation Fund, all of which took part in a $100m round in May 2014 that was led by Sequoia Capital at a reported valuation in excess of $1bn.
The valuation reportedly doubled to more than $2bn in a $300m round featuring Greenoaks, Rose Park, BlackRock Private Equity Partners and Wellington Management Company seven months later.
