In a recent development, Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing has invested $100 million in hospitality chain Oyo Hotels & Homes. The investment, which continues to value Oyo at about $5 billion, has been made from Didi-controlled entity Star Virtue Investment, as said by people aware of developments to media.
This brings to a close Oyo’s $1 billion financing round led by existing backer SoftBank Vision Fund, which has pumped $800 million into the company.
Singapore-based transportation major Grab infused $100 million in the Gurgaon-based startup in December 2018.
People familiar with the deal said that Beijing-headquartered Didi’s investment is expected to be channelled across Oyo’s fastgrowing China business and its India operations. A representative for Oyo confirmed about the official closure of the $1-billion round.
“$900 million was closed back in the quarter ended December 2018 and we have also received the balance $100 million as disclosed in the RoC filings. We do not have any further comments,” the spokesperson said.
The relationship between the two companies dates back to 2017 when Oyo had used the ride-hailing platform to announce its foray into the world’s second-largest economy.
As per the data released by Oyo last month, Oyo Jiudian is present in 280 cities across China, operating more than 5,000 hotels and 260,000 rooms. It runs a mix of franchised and leased properties there.
As per the sources, Japan’s SoftBank, which already holds around 42% in Oyo, will see a similar shareholding in the China subsidiary. Other existing investors in the company such as Sequoia Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners are also backing Oyo China significantly. Oyo China’s cap table will mirror its India shareholding pattern with SoftBank being the lead investor.
The company has projected a revenue of almost Rs 1,500 crore for the current financial year.
