Klook secures $210m funding round to back business growth

For 2023, the e-commerce app boasted an annualised gross booking value of US$3b.

E-commerce platform, Klook, achieved a US$210m funding round to support its business growth and financial stability.

This equity round is led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with participation from BPEA EQT, Asia investment funds Atinum Investment and Golden Vision Capital, and corporate investment arms from Southeast Asia, including Krungsri Finnovate (under Bank of Ayudhya), Kasikornbank Financial Conglomerate and SMIC SG Holdings. The round also includes bank facilities from Citi, J.P. Morgan, and HSBC.

Funds will help enhance product innovation, gain awareness of the Klook Kreator program, and allow the integration of AI into Klook’s operations, via a partnership with Google Cloud.

The funding has marked a new era of growing profitability for Klook with its first year of travel recovery, attributed to tourism rebound and recovery in flight traffic.

With a threefold topline growth, Klook has gained a yearly gross booking value of US$3b, in addition to an early profitable timetable this year. And for 2023, the app has generated more than 80% of bookings and has doubled the influx of new customers from 2019.

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“During the pandemic, we doubled down on our resources in merchant digitization and the expansion of our supply network, including car rentals and outdoor experiences. This positions us strongly to capture new travel trends coming out of the pandemic,” Ethan Lin, CEO and co-founder of Klook, weighed in.

Bracing the new normal, the travel industry is expected to reach a value of US$15.5t by 2033, with the APAC region becoming the fastest-growing market. This leads to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11% from 2023 to 2028, doubling that of North America and Europe, courtesy of the expanding Asian consumer base, increasing demand and trust in the platform.