Hard-Charging Smartphone OEM Xiaomi Now Valued At $45 Billion
In its latest round of fund-raising, Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi was able to raise $1.1 billion. Because of its successful fund-raising efforts, the company announced that it is now valued at $45 billion. The revelation means that the company is now one of the most valuable venture-backed tech startups to date.
That lofty figure means that Xiaomi is now more valuable than companies such as Sony and Nokia. To add to its winning streak, Xiaomi has already become the number one smartphone OEM in the Chinese market smartphone overtaking Samsung. It is also the world’s third largest smartphone maker.
Founded in 2010, Xiaomi’s success has been attributed to the company selling top-notch hardware at great prices. Unlike the competition, the company has an online-only sales approach removing the need for retail stores and it eschews the use of traditional marketing, instead relying on social networking services.
The company managed to record $4.3 billion in revenue in 2013, but “only” $56 million in net profit, which resulted in a razor thin profit margin of 1.8 percent.
