Lightspeed China Companions, the China-focused car of Lightspeed Enterprise Companions, mentioned Tuesday it has closed the most important fundraising rounds in its historical past. The brand new injection got here below three years after its final elevate in early 2019.
The capital went in the direction of two funds: Lightspeed China Companions V with $460 million for early-stage startups and Lightspeed China Companions Choose II with $460 million for growth-stage alternatives. Each will likely be looking for investments in inexperienced tech, deep tech, enterprise tech, well being tech and client tech, the agency mentioned.
Lightspeed Enterprise Companions, rooted in Silicon Valley, began in 1999 and has steadily prolonged its footprint to Israel, India, Europe, Southeast Asia and China, the place it started investing in 2006. Lightspeed China has since constructed up a neighborhood funding crew like its counterparts IDG and Sequoia. Up to now 5 years, the agency noticed quite a few notable IPOs, together with e-commerce giants Pinduoduo and Meituan, freight matching platform Full Truck Alliance, and electrical car upstart Xpeng.
We’ve written a few of its growth-stage portfolio corporations, together with Hesai, a significant lidar maker in China, Laiye, which aspires to be China’s Uipath, and Starfield, one of many meat alternative startups which have emerged in China not too long ago.
Alongside its landmark elevate, Lightspeed China additionally added 5 new companions. Jia Zhu, Francis Kao and Jason Wang have been promoted to companions. It additionally introduced in two new companions — Wei Cai, who was beforehand accountable for Alibaba’s funding in deep tech, and Daniel Solar, who collectively led investments within the client and TMT (expertise, media, and telecom) sectors on the China Renaissance New Financial system Fund.
The agency’s two new funds have been “oversubscribed”, which is “proof of the sturdy assist garnered from returning and new institutional restricted companions throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia,” mentioned James Mi, who helped Google construct its China offshoot earlier than founding Lightspeed China.
“As our society is going through the numerous challenges of local weather change and inequality, we imagine you will need to concentrate on startup corporations with modern services that may carry constructive affect to the world,” mentioned Mi.