Taiwan-based music streaming startup KKBox raises $104M from Singapore’s GIC

In what comes as the largest funding round for a Taiwan startup this year, Taipei-based KKBox has announced it just raised US$104 million from Singapore’s GIC, a government owned investment firm. The company says it will use the funding to continue its overseas expansion and improve its technology.

“The investment stems from GIC’s confidence in the long-term growth potential of KKBox given its unique music streaming service and strong franchise in its home markets. With the rising demand of consumer technology in the region, there will be exciting opportunities for the company as it embarks on its expansion,” the two firms state jointly.

News of the funding comes amidst months of rumors in the Taiwan media regarding an upcoming funding round for the startup, which some reporters believed would come from Singapore’s Temasek holdings.

KKBox isn’t well known outside of Asia, but it’s long been a popular and beloved music streaming service in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia. CEO Chris Lin launched KKBox with his cofounders in 2005 as a PC application, and steadily built up a catalogue of western and Asian pop music available for on-demand listening. When we checked in with them earlier this year, they had racked up 10 million registered users and 2 million paying subscribers (those figures include its white label products).

Spotify’s steady march across Asia has led some observers to wonder how that high-profile competitor may or may not affect KKBox’s growth. Recently, it’s differentiated itself by providing entertainment news, and even branched out into ticket booking in Taiwan. GIC’s financial support should position the company to bolster those initiatives.

See: KKBox did Spotify in Asia before Spotify existed

We’ve reached out to KKBox for more comments on these developments.