China-based online used car auction service Tiantianpaiche has raised $100m in funding from online automobile platform Autohome, China Money Network reported yesterday.
Autohome has additionally secured an option to invest up to $65m in convertible note financing in Tiantianpaiche in three years’ time.
Tiantianpaiche operates an online auction platform for used car sellers and buyers. The company also operates more than 40 shops in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou and is targeting a million vehicles annually by 2020.
Autohome and Tiantianpaiche will seek operational cooperation and integration of each other’s services. The funding will go towards an expansion across China and the development of additional services, including used car retail and financing.
Tiantianpaiche raised $180m in a series C round closed in October 2017 after China Industrial Bank supplied an $80m in extension.
The initial $100m tranche was supplied by internet company Tencent, automotive e-commerce portal Bitauto, telecoms group Softbank’s SB China Capital and trading and technology firm Susquehanna International Group’s local unit SIG Asia Investments and Pagoda in 2016.
Tencent, Bitauto, SB China Capital and SIG Asia Investments previously took part in the series A and B rounds in 2015, supplying a total of $73m in funding.