Hong Kong online travel unicorn Klook raises US$210 million in new funding after achieving first profit
- The series E+ funding round was led by US venture capital firm Bessemer Venture Partners and joined by several Asian funds
- Klook, which became a unicorn in 2018, says it will use the newly raised capital to expand product offerings and boost AI adoption
Klook, a Hong Kong-based online travel booking start-up, has raised new money and turned profitable for the first time, amid a boom in post-pandemic international travel.
The company said on Thursday it received US$210 million in a new series E+ funding round led by US venture capital firm Bessemer Venture Partners and joined by Asian funds including BPEA EQT, Atinum Investment and Golden Vision Capital, as well as bank facilities from Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and HSBC.
Klook, started in Hong Kong in 2014, achieved unicorn status in 2018 after a US$200 million funding round that hoisted its valuation above US$1 billion.
The online travel agency, which lets users book local tours, restaurants, hotels and transport around the world, also said it reached profitability for the first time earlier this year.
The company said it reached an annualised gross booking value of US$3 billion in 2023 – a threefold jump from 2019 – and acquired twice as many new customers as four years ago. Repeat customers made up over half of the bookings this year, it added.