Xiaoju Kuaizhi, the Cayman Islands-based holding company of China-based ride-sharing app providers Didi Dache-Kuaidi Dache backed by e-commerce company Alibaba and internet company Tencent, is raising $1.5bn, Bloomberg reported earlier today.
The round values the company between $12bn and $15bn. The news follows Friday’s revelation that US-based ride-sharing app Uber is seeking a $1bn round to take on the Chinese market.
Although investors have not been disclosed yet, Bloomberg sources have told the publication the round is backed by both existing and new investors.
Didi Dache and Kuaidi Dache announced their merger in February 2015, when the combined entity was valued at $6bn. Coatue Management, Farallon Capital Management and several undisclosed backers invested $600m in April 2015, boosting the valuation to $8.8bn.
In May 2015, the company raised $142m from microblogging platform Sina Weibo, hoping to fend off Uber.
In January 2015, Kuaidi Dache secured $600m for a round led by SoftBank Internet, a subsidiary of telecom company SoftBank. Alibaba and Tiger Global contributed to the round.
Alibaba previously also participated in a $100m round in 2014, with Matrix Partners and New Horizons, as well as a $10m series A round in 2013 alongside Matrix. Car rental company eHi has invested $25m.
Meanwhile, Didi Dache had attracted a total of $820m before the merger. In December 2014, Tencent backed a $700m series D round co-led by Temasek, the sovereign wealth fund of Singapore, and investment firm DST Global.
Tencent also participated in a $100m series C round in January 2014 and a $15m series B round in May 2013.
Kuaidi Dache and Didi Dache currently operate in 360 cities across the People’s Republic, with a total of 1.35 million drivers. They continue to operate under their respective brands, and dominate 78% of the market. Uber’s market share currently stands at 11%.