Livestreaming platform developer Kuaishou has led a $434m series F round for China-based online question-and-answer service Zhihu, Bloomberg reported yesterday.
Internet groups Baidu and Tencent also contributed to the round along with private equity firm Capital Today. It valued the company at almost $3.5bn, sources close to the deal told Caixin Global.
Founded in 2011, Zhihu runs an online platform where users can source answers to questions from an online community made up of some 220 million registered users.
The company also hosts forums, an online publishing service and livestreamed Q+A sessions from verified experts and business partners. It sells online education products but still generates most of its revenue from advertising, a source told Caixin.
The series F proceeds will help Zhihu expand its online ecosystem, with help from Baidu and Kuaishou, while it continues to develop its technology. It has now raised more than $890m altogether.
Tencent and Capital Today were among the investors in Zhihu’s last round, a $270m series E in August 2018 that reportedly valued it at $2.5bn. They also took part in its $100m series D in early 2017 alongside internet company Sogou, Qiming Venture Partners and Sinovation Ventures.
Zhihu closed a $55m series c round led by Tencent in 2015, its earlier funding having been supplied by Qiming and SAIF Partners.
