We at EqualOcean tracked the major funding rounds or industry events that took place in China's consumption space in January 2023. And the following is a list of deals that we have selected for you, based on a number of criteria, including the funding amount, the financial backers, and the segments in which the companies operate.
UGREEN
UGREEN (Chinese: 绿联科技) passed the listing hearing on January 6, scheduled to be listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, with Huatai Securities (Chinese: 华泰证券) as the sponsor.
Founded in 2012, UGREEN's main business is research and development, design, and production and sales of 3C consumer electronics products, dedicated to providing users with a full range of digital solutions, with products mainly covering five series: transmission, audio and video, charging, mobile peripherals and memory.
UGREEN completed a strategic financing of CNY 300 million in June 2022. GL Ventures (Chinese: 高瓴创投) was among the investors.
Fenbi
Fenbi LTD. (Chinese: 粉笔科技, HK: 2469), a Chinese career education institution, listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on January 9 at an issue price of HKD 9.90 apiece. CITI, CICC and BAS were the joint sponsors.
The funds raised will be used to enrich course content, strengthen content and technology development capabilities, marketing, and expand the customer base.
Fenbi is a leading provider of career education and training services in China, dedicated to providing access to high-quality non-academic education and training services through technology and innovation.
MetteCashmere
MetteCashmere (Chinese: 羊绒世家) filed a prospectus on January 6, planning to list on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.
The company expects to invest CNY 351 million (USD 51.74 million) in fundraising, and the money will be used for marketing network construction projects and intelligent production line construction projects.
MetteCashmere is an apparel company with cashmere, wool and other plush materials as its core, and its main businesses are apparel design, research and development, production and sales.
BRIGHT
Chinese pet food maker BRIGHT (Chinese: 布兰德) completed a Pre Series A round on January 11, raising tens of millions of CNY. The investment was exclusively from the listed e-commerce service provider Guangzhou Ruoyuchen Tech. Co.,Ltd. (Chinese: 若羽臣, SZ: 003010).
The proceeds will be used for product development, supply chain system improvement, and channel expansion for marketing and sales.
The mid-to-high-end brand was founded in March 2021 and specializes in the development of pet foods with an emphasis on gastrointestinal health, coat care, and postural care.
QuantaSing Group
Chinese online learning service provider QuantaSing Group (Chinese: 量子之歌) debuted its stock on the Nasdaq under the symbol QSGon Friday, January 20th. The company raised about USD 40.6 million by offering 3.25 million American Depositary Shares (ADS) at an estimated range of USD 11.50 to USD 13.50 a share with underwriters Citigroup and CICC.
The funding will be used to improve the user learning experience and content development capabilities, expand services and overseas business, improve technology infrastructure, and marketing and branding.
In the last twelve months, QuantaSing Group Limited generated USD 403.2 million in revenue and had a net loss of USD 13.7 million.
FreeYond
Tech company FreeYond (Chinese: 深圳自由跃动科技有限公司) completed an angel funding round on January 12, raising nearly CNY 100 million. The investment was made by a Malaysian consortium led by well-known Malaysian investor Datuk Chai Woon Chet.
FreeYond was founded in May 2022 and has launched 2 smartphones and 1 TWS headset. Its products are sold in Latin America, Africa, Southeast Asia, Central, and Eastern Europe, etc. The company's online channels include AliExpress, Mercado Libre, Jumia, Amazon, and Shopee.
Bosie
Genderless apparel brand bosie (Chinese: 伯喜) closed a CNY 100 million Series B2 round of funding on January 17 from individual investors, and the use of the proceeds was not disclosed.
Founded in 2018, bosie has completed eight rounds of funding to date, with investors from organizations and companies including Eastern Bell Capital (Chinese: 钟鼎资本), 5Y Capital (Chinese: 五源资本), Genesis Capital (Chinese: 元生资本), Cyanhill Capital (Chinese: 青山资本), GSR Ventures (Chinese: 金沙江创投), Zhen Fund (Chinese: 真格基金), and bilibili (Chinese: 哔哩哔哩).
According to its official social media account, bosie is a gender-neutral clothing brand targeting the "Generation Z" consumer group born after 1995. Currently, bosie has 8 directly-managed shops and 24 affiliated shops in China, mainly in first-tier cities.
Ovodan Foods
Suzhou Ovodan Foods Co., Ltd (Chinese: 苏州欧福蛋业股份有限公司, hereinafter referred to as “Ovodan Foods”) was successfully listed on the Beijing Stock Exchange on 18 January 2023 at a price of CNY 2.50 per share, becoming the first foreign-funded listed company on the Beijing Stock Exchange.
Established in January 2004, Ovodan Foods is a Chinese member of the world-famous egg products supplier -OVODAN (formerly known as Sanovo Egg Group).
According to the firm's prospectus, it aims to get about CNY153.70 million to upgrade the assembly line, expand production, and add more liquidity.
The company will allocate CNY 63 million of those funds to upgrade the assembly line for egg products, CNY 60 million to the project of production expansion of 15,000 tonnes of egg products, while the rest will be used for working capital.
Jiangsu Jideli
Chinese condiment maker Jiangsu Jideli Food Co., Ltd (Jideli, Chinese: 江苏吉得利食品有限公司) raised CNY 200 million from a series B round on January 19.
Investors of the round include the Jiangsu government, WZ Group (Chinese: 物产中大, SH600704), and Wens Investment (Chinese: 温润投资), an investment firm of Wens Food Group (Chinese: 温氏股份, SZ300498).
Jiangsu Jideli was founded in 2017 and specializes in food-flavoring compounds. Its four sub-brands are Jideli (Chinese: 吉得利), Shi Guang Wang Shi (Chinese: 食光往事), Henry Morgan, and Snorlax (Chinese: 卡比兽).
Yue Hua Entertainment
Chinese entertainment group and talent agency Yue Hua Entertainment Group (Chinese: 乐华娱乐集团, HK02306) went public on Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKSE) on January 19. It opened at HKD 5.60 per share and closed at HKD 6.03 per share, up 47.79%, with a turnover of HKD 298 million and a market cap of HKD 5.25 billion.
Sun Mass Energy Development Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Ruyi Holdings Limited (Chinese: 中国儒意, HK0103), Maoyan Entertainment HK (Chinese: 猫眼娱乐（香港）有限公司), Deputy Chairman of Anta Sports (Chinese: 安踏, HK02020) Ding Shijia, and TradArt Flagship Investment SPC were the cornerstone investors.
With the funding from the IPO, Yue Hua Entertainment plans to invest in artist management, grow its pan-entertainment business, expand its music IP library, and promote the live performances of its artists abroad. The general corporate operations of the company will receive a share of the proceeds.
The entertainment agency was founded in 2009 and engages in artist management, music IP production and operation, and pan-entertainment business.
Dream Blossom
Qingdao Dream Blossom Technology Co., Ltd. (Chinese: 青岛梦想绽放科技有限公司), formerly known as Beijing Dream Blossom Technology Co., Ltd. (Chinese: 北京梦想绽放科技有限公司) bagged CNY 400 million in a Series C round on January 10. The investment was made by Qingdao Economic Control Group (Chinse: 青岛经控集团) and Zhenzhi Capital (Chinese: 真知资本).
Dream Blossom is a technology company founded in 2016 and specializes in extended reality (XR) technology. It produces 4K VR devices, computer vision (CV) tools, and MR devices.
Xiaodu Technology
Artificial intelligence products developer Xiaodu Technology Limited (Chinese: 小度科技) completed a Series B round on January 19, with China Renaissance (Chinese: 华兴资本) acting as the exclusive financial advisor. After the financing, Xiaodu's valuation reached RMB35.5 billion.
Xiaodu plans to set up Xiaodu Technology IoT headquarters in Wuxi Huishan Economic Development Zone. It aims to create integrated smart home systems based on the technology of DuerOS, and to help accelerate industrial clustering. Formed in 2014 and headquartered in Beijing, Xiaodu Technology is the developer of DuerOS, an AI-based voice assistant system that supports television, speakers, and other smart home appliances.
Lu Xi He
Chinese bakery chain Lu Xi He (Chinese: 泸溪河) secured CNY 100s of millions in a Series A round led by Jiangsu Bailian Confitop Venture Capital Management (Chinese: 百联挚高资本) and Cypress Capital (Chinese: 龙柏资本) on January 13.
Proceeds from the round will be put into supply chain management and digitalization. Founded in Nanjing in 2013, Lu Xi He (Chinese: 泸溪河) is a bakery chain making Chinese pastries. It has over 360 directly operated stores nationwide.
Jiangsu Bailian Confitop Venture Capital Management stated that it will leverage abundant retail channel resources to assist Lu Xi He in expanding offline channels and growing into a leading bakery brand.
Pagoda
Chinese fruit retailer Shenzhen Pagoda Industrial Group Corp Ltd (Chinese:百果园, HK:02411; hereinafter referred to as “Pagoda”) was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 16 January.
Founded in 2001, Pagoda is a large-scale chain enterprise integrating fruit procurement, planting support, post-harvest preservation, logistics storage, standard classification, marketing development, brand operation, store retail and information technology.
Zhengwei Group
Zhengwei Group Holdings Company Limited (Chinese: 正味集团, HK02147) went public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on January 13, issuing around 200 million shares at a price of HKD 0.68 per share.
Proceeds will be put into constructing a new factory and buying production lines, building up snack production capacity, enhancing marketing, and expanding sales channels, and some will go into business operations.
Founded in 2002, Zhengwei Group manufactures and distributes dried food products and started snack production in 2019. The Company produces dried vegetable products, mushrooms, dried aquatic products, condiments, and other products.