China's intensively competitive mobile app industry and its rapidly developing online-to-offline (O2O) sector have both made the headlines in the early stages of 2015, while a convergence of the two has been responsible for major news stories this week.
The Wall Street Journal has been quick to jump onto the coverage of the new funding round of China's popular restaurant review and group-buying app company, Dianping Holdings Ltd., which could launch it into the exclusive billion-dollar-startup club.
Alongside its main rival, Meituan.com, Dianping has managed to achieve astounding user and usage data through a pricing framework that is more accessible in comparison to American counterparts.
According to its own figures, Dianping--described as a combination of Yelp and Groupon--was patronized by over 190 million monthly active users in the fourth quarter, who used more than 60 million reviews of over 12 million restaurants and local businesses that were located in approximately 2,300 cities throughout China.
To gain a clearer perspective, 24.1 million active Groupon users bought a voucher or product over the previous 12 months, while 135 million average monthly unique visitors utilized the Yelp app.
However, the eastern Asian nation also holds the rapid-expansion-rate trump card, as eager investors place their monetary faith in the rapid growth of nascent business entities in an immensely populated country that consists of more than half-a-billion Internet users and a similar tally of smartphone users.
The investment trend continues with Dianping's latest fundraising venture, as it is looking to generate close to $800 million from a group that includes Tencent Holdings Ltd., which already holds a minority stake in the startup.
Once finalized, it is anticipated that the deal will value the review app at around $4 billion. Singapore's Temasek Holdings Pte. Ltd., Fountainvest Partners, and compatriot business Wanda Group are also reportedly part of the funding round's discussions, which are expected to close by the time February is over.