SINGAPORE, June 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The Chope Group (www.Chope.co) announced today that it has received US$8M (SG$11M) in an investment round led by F&H Fund Management, a leading Asian investment firm, along with NSI Ventures, the venture arm of US$1.8B Northstar Group.
Prior to this, the company had raised US$3.5M since its launch in 2011, making this latest round its largest ever.
Chope is Asia's leading online restaurant platform, enabling users to make instantly-confirmed reservations and queue through Ticktok (a recent integration allowing Chope to be a full service solution to busy restaurants) via their phone. Chope also provides marketing services to restaurants in Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, and most recently Bangkok. The company has grown at a rapid pace, more than doubling revenue and seating over 20 million diners to date.
"As demonstrated by their remarkable growth, Chope's service provides real value to both diners and restaurant operators," said John Wu, chairman of F&H Fund Management. Mr. Wu was previously the CTO of Alibaba Group from 2000-2007 and was named China Angel Investor of the Year 2014 by Entrepreneur, China edition. "We hope to help Chope expand its platform to more Asian cities, and accelerate the company's pace of product innovation."
DSG Consumers Partners, Frontier Ventures, and Singapore Press Holdings also participated in the latest round of fundraising, as well as other leading Chinese investors. This is a clear signal that investors have been impressed by Chope's presence in Southeast Asia and see ample opportunities for growth in China.
"NSI's portfolio is made up of leaders in their respective categories, and we are impressed by Chope's revenue traction since our last investment. This investment is a signal of our confidence in Chope's team and their ambition to become the go-to restaurant booking application in Southeast Asia," said Hian Goh, founder and general partner of NSI Ventures.
Additionally, Duncan Robertson, CFO of Katerra, Inc., is joining Chope's Board of Directors. Robertson was a top executive at the world's largest restaurant reservations company OpenTable, and will use his considerable experience to position Chope's Asia strategy.
"This investment and adding Duncan to our Board has further increased Chope's lead in Southeast Asia, but this is just the beginning," said Chope's CEO, Arrif Ziaudeen. "Thousands of restaurants still use paper, and a lot of education is needed to make them realize the potential of being available to mobile-toting diners 24/7."
The most recent round of funding is the latest in a series of positive developments for Chope, including releasing a first-of-its-kind Apple Watch app, and launch of a "What's Happening" feature that enables diners to see which restaurants friends have dined at.
About Chope
The Chope Group is Asia's premier online restaurant reservations provider. With a range of products to meet the varying needs of restaurateurs, Chope helps restaurants use online booking channels, improve yield, and keep better track of their clients' preferences, all while helping diners discover and reserve or queue at the best and most popular restaurants through the Chope website (www.chope.co) and app. Through Chope, diners can make reservations 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from anywhere in the world. With over 700 restaurants on the network and millions of diners seated, Chope is committed to making restaurant dining and discovery easier than ever before. Chope currently operates in Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing and Bangkok.
Press Contact
Annie Lee
chope@chope.co
+65-6225-6612
