(Yicai Global) Sept. 22 – China-based English language tutoring platform Banyu has raised tens of millions of US dollars in its Series C3 round of funding to expand its course offering.

Granite Global Ventures and Bertelsmann Asia Investments jointly led the round, the firm, which was founded three years ago, said in a statement today. Banyu closed its USD120-million C2 round of fundraising last month after completing its C1 round last December. 

The online learning platform will add Chinese, mathematics, and other subjects to its curriculum with the funds, as well as acquire new talent, it said.

Expanding the scale of subjects has become a general trend that many online schools are tapping into this year, Huang He, founder and chief executive, told Yicai Global. Meanwhile, students can reduce their costs by focusing on one platform that spreads knowledge about many topics, he added.

The Covid-19 pandemic seems to have done little to curb the growth of China's K-12 education sector as Banyu's peer Leleketang finished its USD40-million C round of funding last week. 

Banyu's number of users has exceeded 40 million and more than 1.6 million of them are premium users, according to Huang. The company's headcount is nearly 2,000.

Editor: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine