36Kr
{{for|the chemical element {{chem2|_{36}Kr}}|Krypton}}
{{Short description|Chinese technology news website}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox company
| name = 36Kr Holdings Inc.
| trading_name =
| native_name = 北京多氪信息科技有限公司
| logo = 36Kr logo.png
| image =
| image_caption =
| type = Public
| traded_as = {{NASDAQ|KRKR}}
| foundation = {{start date and age|2010|12}}
| industry = Media
| location = Beijing, China
| founder = {{UBL|Liu Chengcheng}}
| key_people = Feng Dagang (CEO)
| products =
| revenue = {{Increase}} {{CNY|link=yes|238.70 million}} (2023)
| net_income = {{Decrease}} {{CNY|link=yes|-89.25 million}} (2023)
| assets = {{Decrease}} {{CNY|link=yes|458.97 million}} (2023)
| equity = {{Decrease}} {{CNY|link=yes|261.86 million}} (2023)
| num_employees = 481 (2023)|
| homepage = {{URL|www.36kr.com}}
}}
36Kr ({{Zh|c=|p=36 Kè|s=36氪}}) is a publicly listed Chinese media company that focuses on technology and financial news. It also is a data provider for entrepreneurs and investors.
It has been referred to as China's equivalent of TechCrunch.
Background
The origins of 36Kr can be traced to the new apps and gadgets tech blog written by Liu Chengcheng ({{Lang-zh|s=刘成城|labels=no}}), who was then a college student majoring in communication engineering at the Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications.{{Cite web |last=方 |first=园婧 |date=21 April 2015 |title=36kr想当创业项目的入口 |url=https://www.jiemian.com/article/266424.html |access-date=23 January 2025 |website=Jiemian News |archive-date=23 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250123062339/https://www.jiemian.com/article/266424.html |url-status=live }} He then attended the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences for a master's program in data mining.{{Cite news |last=Zand |first=Bernhard |date=13 February 2014 |title=China Tech Start-Up Scene Turning Heads Globally |url=https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/china-tech-start-up-scene-turning-heads-globally-a-953319.html |access-date=23 January 2025 |work=Der Spiegel |language=en |issn=2195-1349 |archive-date=29 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230529061525/https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/china-tech-start-up-scene-turning-heads-globally-a-953319.html |url-status=live }}
By late 2010, 19 writers were regularly contributing to Liu's blog. It was then that Liu met Wang Xiao, one of the founders of Baidu, at a university alumni party. Wang offered to invest 300,000 yuan in his blog with Liu eventually accepting the money.
That year, Liu Chengcheng established 36Kr.{{Cite web |last=Deng |first=Iris |date=3 July 2018 |title=How the founder of a major Chinese tech news site is building a co-working space empire |url=https://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/2153172/how-founder-major-chinese-tech-news-site-building-co-working-space |access-date=23 January 2025 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en |archive-date=7 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207163919/http://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/2153172/how-founder-major-chinese-tech-news-site-building-co-working-space |url-status=live }} Liu is a fan of Superman, who is from the planet Krypton. The element Krypton has the atomic number 36. Hence the company's name is named 36Kr.
In July 2011, 36kr launched 36tr which is a database which collected entrepreneurial projects. A few exclusive investors could access the database. Throughout 2012 more than 1,000 projects were put on 36tr.
36kr also launched 36kr+, a service platform that could provide resources to entrepreneurs.
In 2014, 36Kr launched Kr Space, a business incubator which later became a provider of co-working spaces. It drew comparisons to WeWork. In 2016, Kr Space was spun off as an independent business.{{Cite web |last=Baigorri |first=Manuel |date=31 May 2018 |title=Chinese WeWork Rival Seeks New Funding Round to Expand |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-05-31/alibaba-backed-wework-rival-is-said-to-seek-new-funding-round |access-date=23 January 2025 |website=Bloomberg News}}
36Kr quickly expanded as more startups and investors went to the 36Kr site for news. In 2015, 36Kr launched a financing platform that connected entrepreneurs and investors. In 2016, 36Kr launched Jing Data, a subscription-based venture capital and private equity database.As 36Kr gained exposure, it obtained funding from investors such as Alibaba Group, Matrix Partners and e.ventures 36Kr was described as a sort of LinkedIn for Chinese startups.
By the end of 2017, 36Kr had amassed a global readership of more than 150 million and published a total of 50,000 stories online.
On 8 November 2019, 36Kr held its initial public offering by becoming a listed company on the Nasdaq raising $20 million. On its first day trading debut, its shares dropped 10%.{{Cite news |last=Yueqi |first=Yang |date=8 November 2019 |title=Chinese Tech News Site 36Kr Flops in Tough Week for U.S. IPOs |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-08/chinese-tech-news-site-36kr-flops-in-tough-week-for-u-s-ipos |access-date=23 January 2025 |work=Bloomberg News |language=en |archive-date=27 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200727101020/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-08/chinese-tech-news-site-36kr-flops-in-tough-week-for-u-s-ipos |url-status=live }}
In March 2022, Ant Group, an affiliate of Alibaba Group which held 15.1% in 36Kr sold its entire stake in the company.{{Cite web |last=Li |first=Jiaxing |date=14 March 2022 |title=Alibaba affiliate Ant sells stake in tech news site 36Kr |url=https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3170417/alibaba-affiliate-ant-sells-stake-tech-news-site-36kr-fintech-giant |access-date=23 January 2025 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en |archive-date=11 November 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241111021301/https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3170417/alibaba-affiliate-ant-sells-stake-tech-news-site-36kr-fintech-giant |url-status=live }}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://www.36kr.com}}
{{authority control}}
Category:2010 establishments in China
Category:2019 initial public offerings
Category:Companies based in Beijing
Category:Companies listed on the Nasdaq