Chinese education platform Genshuixue raises US$50M series A

Chinese online education platform Genshuixue announced Monday that it has raised a US$50 million series A round. The round was led by Banyan Capital, and reportedly values the startup at US$250 million (update: corrected the name of the investor).

Genshuixue is a website and mobile app that allows users to search for courses, both local and online, in a variety of subjects from piano to SAT prep. Once they’ve picked a type of course, users can browse all of the teachers of that subject in their area. The site includes user comments and verifies details like teachers’ professional qualifications so users can be sure of what they’re getting. Once they’re done browsing their options, users can register and pay for their classes online.

The site has been online for just under half a year, but in that time Genshuixue has signed up more than 70,000 teachers who offer more than 69,000 different classes to “millions” of students. According to founder Chen Xiangdong, thanks to Genshuixue the site’s most popular teacher is now generating millions in income.

The online education sector continues to burn white-hot in China. In just the past few weeks, several test-prep startups have raked in investments and an O2O education platform was acquired by Dianping. Direct competitors to Genshuixue like Qingtajiao have also raised funds in recent months.

(Source: Sina Tech)