Xiaomi secures $1 bn loan to boost retail footprint, global expansion

Don't want to miss the best from Business Standard?

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi has secured a $1 billion loan to expand its footprints globally and increase its retail opportunities, the company said on Friday.

The smartphone manufacturer has secured a three-year term $1 billion syndicated loan agreement from a total of 18 banks across India, Europe, the Middle East, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Xiaomi previously secured a three-year $1 billion syndicated loan in 2014.

"New retail, which is the integration of online and offline retail, and globalisation are two of the company's top five strategic areas for development. The syndicated loan will further boost its efforts to develop these areas," Lei Jun, Xiaomi CEO and Founder, said.

In the second quarter of this year, Xiaomi shipped 23.16 million smartphones globally -- an increase of 70 per cent from the previous quarter.

"Xiaomi still offers the best value in the Chinese market and it remains the preferred choice for price-conscious consumers. The online channel continues to be a key route to market for Xiaomi and this quarter saw it take the lead in the 618 online sales events across online retail platforms," said Lucio Chen, a Canalys Research Analyst.

The Chinese smartphone maker has also toppled Samsung in the best-seller slot for smartphone models in the under Rs 10,000 segment in India in the second quarter of 2017, market research firm Counterpoint Research said this week.

The top two positions were grabbed by Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 with 7.2 per cent and Redmi 4 with 4.5 per cent market share, followed by Samsung Galaxy J2 at 4.3 per cent.

Xiaomi is now present in over 40 countries and regions where it has leading market shares.

Earlier, Xiaomi signed a multi-year patent agreement with Nokia, which included Xiaomi's acquisition of patent assets from Nokia.

The company currently has 4,806 granted patent assets, of which 2,404 are international patents, creating a strong foundation for Xiaomi's global expansion plans.