CHINA GROUP BUYING WEBSITES EAGER FOR LISTING

AsiaInfo Services
06-10-2011
China Group Buying Websites Eager for Listing

BEIJING, Jun 10, 2011 (SinoCast Daily Business Beat via COMTEX) -- Learning that Groupon has submitted an IPO application, Chinese online group buying Web sites unanimously speed up their pace of listing. For example, Lashou.com CEO Wu Bo has rushed to the US, preparing for the Web site's overseas listing.

By far, Lashou.com has totally raised USD 170 million. However, its aim to become the number one Chinese online group buying Web site faces challenge from domestic peer 55tuan.com. Lately, the latter held a press conference, saying that it has gained strategic investment from investors such as CDH Investments and Zero2ipo Capital and will start its pace of listing in the Nasdaq. It even invited Nasdaq Asia Pacific president and chief representative of China Region to attend the press conference.

Rampant talks also reveal that Meituan.com is busy preparing for a listing and aims to snatch the leading status in the Chinese online group buying market.

Forbes points out that listing has become the best choice for Chinese online group buying Web sites, which are eager to raise capitals. Lashou.com, the first of them to win venture capital investment, is considered as their typical representative.

Lashou.com kicked off the third round of financing just before its prepared listing. Earlier, Wu Bo unveiled that the financing will commence from June 2011 and the listing will be carried out within two years. Actually, both the financing and listing have been put forward.

Before March, 55tuan.com was still not considered as a mainstream online group buying Web site in China. However, its expansion has been quick through mergers and acquisitions of regional peers.

The planned IPO of 55tuan.com undoubtedly challenges the status of Lashou.com. Lately, reports said that the latter's more than 200 backbones left their posts and joined the former on May 19, 2011.

Investors are certainly unwilling to witness the challenge from 55tuan.com to Lashou.com. Allen Zhu, partner of GSR Ventures, believes that 55tuan.com is hyping to improve its brand influence, since Internet companies usually would not plan listing after three to four rounds of financing.

However, a top executive of 55tuan.com holds different opinions, saying that NetEase.com Inc. (Nasdaq: NTES) was even smaller than 55tuan.com when it kicked off IPO. The most important thing is to provide better service for customers and attract more institutional investors. An Internet expert agrees with the opinion, saying that even Youku.com Inc. (NYSE: YOKU), which is still suffering from losses, could have satisfying performance on the capital market.

(USD 1 = CNY 6.48)

Source: www.nf.nfdaily.cn (June 10, 2011)

KEYWORD: BEIJING INDUSTRY KEYWORD: Internet & Online Services & Media SUBJECT CODE: Internet & Online Services
E-commerce
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SinoCast China IT Watch
IPO
group buying
listing
US
Internet
financing

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