Studying overseas can be a life-changing experience. Unfortunately, it also tends to be a complicated and expensive proposition. Getting into a foreign school is one thing. Figuring out how and where you’re actually going to be able to live in a foreign city can be quite another.
Student.com – think AirBnb for international students – has just raised a big chunk of cash to help in its quest to make the international student accommodation problem simpler. Today, the company announced a US$60 million combined series B and C round led by VY Capital and including participation from Horizons Ventures (Li Ka-shing’s tech investment fund), Xiaomi’s Hugo Barra, and Spotify founders Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon.
Student.com isn’t strictly an Asian startup. As you might expect for a company that’s focused on international travel, it has offices around the world, in London, Shanghai, New York and Hong Kong. But the startup’s roots can be traced back to China. China is where founder CEO Luke Nolan first met co-founder Shakil Khan during a study abroad program in 2001. And China is where, ten years later, Nolan – then working in China – saw the need for a platform that could help Chinese students find accommodation abroad.
Unsurprisingly given its Asian origins, Student.com sources most of its students from China, Hong Kong and India. But the platform took a total of US$110M in bookings from over 100 different countries last year. This academic season, it says it will have 750,000 beds available across 426 cities and near 1,000 universities.
The company plans to use the investment to further its global expansion plans. In addition to further building out its 200-person team, Student.com also wants to bolster its presence in the US, Latin America, and the Middle East over the next few months.
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