Klook earmarks monster Series D for expansion, curation, tech and efficiencies
By cameron in Uncategorized
In-destination booking platform Klook has secured another US$200 million funding and will expand into the US and Europe.
The Hong Kong-based firm currently offers more than 50,000 attractions, tours and experiences from 5,000 industry partners across 200 destinations.
The latest round of funding (Series D) takes Klook’s total financing up to US$300 million since the company was founded in 2014.
See its tnooz startup pitch from 2015 here.
Investors participating in this latest round included Sequoia China, Matrix Partners, Goldman Sachs, Boyu Capital, TCV and OurCrowd.
Klook currently employs 600 people across 16 offices, including newly opened locations in London and Amsterdam. The company said it was “on track” to achieve US$1 billion in annual bookings in 2018 for the first time.
Expansion plans include opening an office in the US by the end of 2018 and adding more “curated” activities and services in the US and Europe, which will appeal to Asian tourists.
While Klook has primarily focused on Asian travellers so far, it also wants to attract more bookings from US and European visitors to Asia, as part of a strategy to serve customers around the world.
Klook will also use the new funding to improve its technology to “provide frictionless, real-time booking experiences”. The company has already developed a merchant app for suppliers and a QR code-based electronic voucher system for customers to use for admission.
Eric Gnock Fah, chief operating officer and co-founder, said:
“The new funding will help us to deepen our partnership with merchants through more technological solutions that bring new sources of customers and optimise operational efficiencies.”
Related reading from tnooz:
[Series C] Klook raises the bar with $60 million raise, heads to Europe and North America (Oct 2017)
[Series B] Klook raises $30 million in funding (March 2017)
See also:
Klook’s COO Eric Knock Fah was interviewed this March as part of tnoozLIVE@ITB: