SoftBank-Backed Klook Snags $210 Million in Travel Bounceback

(Bloomberg) -- Booking service Klook Travel Technology Ltd. raised $210 million in a funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners, seeking to expand its footprint as travel recovers following the pandemic.

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Private equity firm BPEA EQT and SMIC SG Holdings participated, the Hong Kong-based startup said in a statement on Thursday. Existing investors including HongShan — formerly Sequoia China — also took part in the Series E+ round that consists of a mix of equity financing and bank facilities, bringing the total raised by the startup to more than $900 million.

Klook, which turned cash flow positive mid-2023, is “well prepared” to go public either in the US or in Hong Kong, co-founder and Chief Operating Officer Eric Gnock Fah said in an interview.

The Softbank Group Corp.-backed startup helps travelers book activities like its larger peer Expedia Inc. Klook’s revenue has picked up after the lifting of Covid restrictions unleashed pent-up demand for travel.

One of its growth pockets is helping millions of consumers in Asia book travel online for the first time, Gnock Fah said. It’s banking on an outsized boost for travel demand in Asia, predicting a decline in prices next year as flight capacities increase.

“Asia is on an upward trend,” Gnock Fah said. “There’s still so much market growth that will still be happening in Asia. It could see double the growth of the West.”

Founded in 2014, the startup allows travelers to discover and book tours, local transportation and restaurants in more than 2,300 locations globally. Klook, which first rolled out in Asia, competes with a growing number of experience booking services, including Airbnb Inc., TripAdvisor Inc. and Expedia.

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