Asian travel activity booking site Klook bags US$5 million to ramp up portfolio as its 50 per cent discounts prove a winner

2-MIN READ2-MIN

From left to right: Bernie Xiong, Eric Gnock Fah and Ethan Lin, co-founders of Klook, pose for a photograph at their office in Hong Kong. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Published: 8:00am, 16 Oct 2015Updated: 3:37pm, 16 Oct 2015

Hong Kong-based travel activity booking platform Klook has secured US$5 million in a Series A funding round led by US venture capital firm Matrix Partners, the company announced on Friday.

Klook, which offers tried and tested activities and tickets to attractions in Asia to more than 500,000 users, also drew investment from China Growth Capital and Hong Kong’s “father of the red chips” Francis Leung Pak-to, the chairman for Greater China of CVC Capital Partners.

Klook said it will use the money to increase its portfolio of activities and destinations while also enhancing its technology.

“Five out of the top 10 most visited cities in the world are in Asia -‐Hong Kong, Singapore, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok,” said‐Klook co-‐founder Ethan Lin.

“As a Hong Kong-based start-up, Klook is at the epicentre of Asia travel, and is well-‐positioned to leverage its geographical advantage to transform into a global travel brand.”

In June, it raised US$1.5 million in seed funding led by Wu Xiaoguang, the senior vice president and chief executive of e-commerce for Tencent, China’s gaming and social giant.

Klook - the name is an abbreviation of “keep looking” - was launched in September 2014. This may, it released its app on Apple Store.