China-based peer-to-peer lending company Weidai has raised RMB1bn ($153m) in a series C round featuring home decoration services provider Dong Yi Ri Sheng Home Decoration Group, Asian Venture Capital Journal reported today.
Private equity fund Vision Knight Capital led the round, which comes after a $24m series B round led by smart city services provider Hakim in September 2015.
Founded in 2011, Weidai operates an online lending platform that provides short-term loans, often with a one-month maturity, and interest rates of about 11%. The loans are secured against a customer’s car, and Weidai intends to extend its collateral to property in future.
The company, which has 85 outlets stretching across the Chinese provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui and Guangdong, was overseeing $235m of transactions per month as of August 2015.
Shanda Capital, the corporate venturing subsidiary of online media and entertainment provider Shanda Interactive Entertainment, led a RMB100m round in 2014, according to Marbridge Consulting.