ShareChat eyes $200 million funding from SAIF Partners and others

According to news sources, the social media platform which facilitates regional language, ShareChat is in talks with SAIF Partners, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Twitter to raise a fund of $200 million.

ShareChat and Chinese app Helo are aiming for the next billion internet users from small towns in the country.

ShareChat had filed a lawsuit alleging copyright infringement soon after Helo entered the India market in 2018.

In recent time, ShareChat has been experimenting with groups and communities on the app. With banning of Chinese apps which includes Helo, now ShareChat has a huge potential market to capture.

The news report also reveals that ShareChat is planning to step into the short-videos space dominated by Chinese apps TikTok and Likee until now.

“The funds will be used to drive growth. ShareChat is looking to bring new creators, expand its product offerings and provide users with newer experiences,” said a person familiar with the matter.

After the ban announcement, ShareChat investors reached out to the Bengaluru-based company to discuss how it could capture the gap in the market, according to sources.

ShareChat has 60 million monthly active users. On Wednesday, the company said the platform had recorded 500,000 downloads every hour, and over 15 million downloads since the ban was announced on Monday.

Last year in August, ShareChat raised an amount of $100 million from Twitter and other investors. It also counts TrustBridge Partners, India Quotient, and Shunwei Capital among its investors.