It's official: Xiaomi Corp. is the world's most valuable
technology startup.
The Chinese smartphone maker on Monday confirmed that it has
raised $1.1 billion in its latest funding round.
Including the more than $1 billion of capital raised now that
the deal has closed, Xiaomi's valuation would be more than $46
billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
That makes Xiaomi the world's most valuable technology startup,
putting it above all other startups currently backed by venture
capitalists, including Uber Technologies, Inc., the taxi-booking
app which earlier this month said a new round of funding valued it
at $41 billion. Only Facebook Inc. in 2011 raised capital at a
higher valuation from private investors--an investment from Goldman
Sachs valued the social network at $50 billion at the time.
Xiaomi's founder Lei Jun made the announcement in a brief
posting on his page on the popular Chinese microblogging site, Sina
Weibo. Mr. Lei said a range of investors participated in the round,
including All-Stars Investment Ltd., DST Global and Singapore
sovereign-wealth fund GIC Pte. Ltd.
The Wall Street Journal first reported news of Xiaomi's
fundraising earlier this month.
The price tag reflects investors" confidence in Xiaomi's growth
potential. Already the largest smartphone maker in China by
shipments and the fourth-largest in the world as of the third
quarter, Xiaomi has plotted expansion into new geographic markets
and new product categories such as smart TVs and air filters.
Xiaomi comprises a web of offshore and Chinese entities. At the
top of its corporate structure is Xiaomi Corp., a Cayman
Islands-incorporated entity.
Overall, Xiaomi Corp. is profitable and is on track to generate
an annual revenue run rate of more than $10 billion by early next
year, according to the person familiar with the company.
The company more than quadrupled its valuation since August
2013, when it raised a round of funding at a $10 billion valuation.
Before that, DST led an investment valuing Xiaomi at $4 billion in
June 2012.
Write to Douglas MacMillan at douglas.macmillan@wsj.com and Rick
Carew at rick.carew@gmail.com
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