Chinese social e-commerce platform Yunji has raised $121 million in its initial public offering (IPO) in the US after selling 11 million American Depositary Shares (ADSs) at $11 apiece, according to its latest regulatory filing.
It sold the shares at the low end of an $11-13 price range. Two of its private equity investors – Crescent Point and Trustbridge – accounted for most of the proceeds after they purchased shares worth up to $100 million.
As of May 3, Yunji (trading on the Nasdaq under the symbol YJ) was trading at $14.15 a share, up 28.64 per cent on its debut.
Yunji intends to use the proceeds to enhance and expand its business operations, upgrade its technology infrastructure, and expand its fulfilment facilities.
Founded in 2015, Yunji targets small and medium distribution sellers by helping them establish and maintain their online platforms, the company said. It raised about $36.1 million in a Series A round led by Crescent Point Capital and joined by Eastern Bell Venture Capital in 2016.
“As a leading social e-commerce platform in China, we have pioneered a unique, membership-based model that leverages the power of social interaction. We offer high-quality products at attractive prices and incentivise our members to promote our platform and share our products with their social contacts,” the company said in its filing.
As of December 31, 2018, it boasted 7.4 million members. It also booked about $1.9 billion in sales for the 12 months that ended December 31, 2018, its prospectus showed.
“Our platform has exhibited robust growth in a highly competitive e-commerce market, evidenced by significant increases in our member base and transaction volumes in the past three years. We are strategically positioned to continue building on our success and growth to-date and deliver on our mission,” said Yunji founder, chairman, and CEO Shanglue Xiao.
Yunji raised $154.9 million in funding over 5 rounds since 2016. It did not disclose the amount it raised in its Series A and Series B+ funding rounds.
China’s online retail industry has experienced tremendous growth, with the overall market size growing from 3.8 trillion yuan in 2015 to 7.2 trillion yuan ($1 trillion) in 2017, representing a CAGR of 37 per cent. It is expected to grow to 15 trillion yuan ($2.2 trillion) in 2022, representing a CAGR of 15.8 per cent.
The online penetration rate of retail market increased from 10.3 per cent in 2015 to 17 per cent in 2017, and is expected to further increase to 24.4 per cent in 2022, according to China Internet Network Information Center and CIC.
Also Read:
Chinese e-commerce platform Yunji files for US IPO
Chinese e-commerce portal Yunji Weidian taps banks for U.S. IPO