Ventech and Vision Knight Capital have led a series C and C+ round of financing in Blued, a Chinese gay social networking mobile app, which is valued at over US$300 million in the latest rounds, according to state-owned newspaper China Daily.
The fundraising amounted to several hundred millions of RMB, according to the article without disclosing specifics.
Other investors included China Mobile Games and Entertainment Group Ltd. and New World Development Co., Ltd.
China’s gay market is valued around US$300 billion, according to Euromonitor International. Gay social networking apps have been downloaded at least 40 million times in China during the first half of 2015, according to a report by Coolchuan.
Founded in 2012, Blued has more than 27 million registered users from over 190 countries as of February, with overseas users accounting for more than 20% of the total. The app is available in nine languages.
The company says it started to make a profit in the first half of 2016 from advertising and fees charged on live streaming, where audiences watch live-streaming video broadcast and send virtual gifts.
