Matrix Partners joins $100m series B round in Chinese social gaming startup

Guangzhou Quwan Network Technology, a Chinese social gaming startup, announced that it has closed US$100 million in series B funding from Matrix Partners China and Orchid Asia Group Management.

Photo credit: Guangzhou Quwan Network Technology

Founded in 2014, Quwan provides services including instant voice messaging, social gaming, esports, and game distribution. It operates TT Voice, which started as a voice chat application designed for mobile gamers and was later developed into a social gaming platform. It focuses on developing personalized services for the Gen Z audience.

TT Voice, which claims to have over 100 million registered users, acts as the team owner of two franchise leagues competing in the League of Legends and the Honor of Kings.

“Gen Z’s online social demand is unmet. It will be a good way to enter the sector by catering to their interests, especially games and esports,” said Huadong Wang, a partner at Matrix Partners China.

The latest investment comes after Quwan raised an undisclosed amount of series A investment, also from Matrix Partners China, in April last year.

According to iReseach, China’s esports market revenue is expected to reach 165 billion yuan (US$25.5 billion) this year, increasing by 17.5% from the previous year.

Tencent, a prominent player in the video game space, has proposed a merger between the game-streaming platforms Huya and Douyu to create a new game-streaming giant that will be valued at more than US$11 billion. Tencent will be taking a 67.5% stake in the combined entity.

Tencent also led a US$100 million series B round in esports startup Versus Programming Network (VSPN) in October last year.

Currency converted from Chinese yuan to US dollar: US$1 = 6.46 yuan.