(Yicai Global) Jan. 12 -- Eigencomm Technologies has raised CNY1 billion (USD157 million) in its latest funding round led by Japan’s SoftBank Vision Fund 2, the Chinese chipmaker said today.

Other participants include Cathay Capital, Costone Asset Management, Guangfa Qianhe Investment and Chobe Capital as well as existing shareholder Qiming Venture Partners, the Shanghai-based firm said.

The Series-C proceeds will be used to continue to develop the company's fifth-generation communication chips and to expand its share of the global market, it said.

Eigencomm specializes in Narrowband Internet of things chipsets that are used in smart firefighting, bike-sharing, asset tracking and smart household appliances. NB-IoT offers wide coverage and low power consumption at a reasonable cost, and was recognized as a 5G standard by the International Telecommunication Union in July 2020.

The company raised hundreds of millions of Chinese yuan, equivalent to tens of millions of US dollars, in a Series B fundraiser that closed in December 2020, led by Qiming Venture Partners and China Universal Capital Management.

China had over 1.39 million 5G base stations as of last November and 497 5G terminals, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

Editor: Kim Taylor