Uber’s China rival Didi Chuxing raises funds

Qilai Shen | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The payment confirmation page is displayed on the Didi Chuxing application in this arranged photograph taken in Shanghai, China, on Sunday, May 22, 2016.

China’s ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing has raised over $4 billion in its latest round of funding, the company said on Thursday, posing a challenge to its U.S. rival Uber in its efforts to branch out overseas.

The latest investment values Didi at over $50 billion, according to Reuters, and equips it with the cash needed to aggressively pursue expansion opportunities abroad.

Earlier this month, Reuters reported that Didi will launch in Mexico next year. The move would mark Didi’s first expansion of its services beyond China.

On Tuesday, Didi said it was it was looking to bring its ride-hailing service to Taiwan.

Didi said it intends to use the proceeds to “scale up investments in AI (artificial intelligence) talent and technologies, to further build up its intelligent driving and smart transportation capabilities, and to bring more innovative and diversified transportation services to broader communities around the world.”

Didi said the fundraising attracted both Chinese and international investors.

Softbank of Japan said in an email to CNBC that it participated in the funding. The company did not disclose how much it invested.