In an attempt to stop Uber from coming to China, Didi Chuxing Technology Co - the Chinese car-hailing app - has announced that it was able to raise more than 48 billion yuan ($7.3 billion) from its latest fundraising campaign.

Reuters reported that Didi Chuxing received about 29.7 billion yuan ($4.5 billion) from its new and existing investors. Details about this include China Merchants Bank being committed to Didi Chuxing as its lead arranger for a syndicated loan facility that could reach up to 16.5 billion yuan ($2.5 billion).

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China Life Insurance Co. Ltd  also contributed nearly 4 billion yuan ($600 million), adding a long-term debt investment that amounted to around 2 billion yuan ($300 million).

Apple Inc. joined in with a whopping 6.6 billion yuan ($1 billion). The tech giant made the contribution months ago, and they have also invested on other car-service companies such as Lyft and Uber.

Didi Chuxing said in a statement that the company now has 69.2 billion yuan ($10.5 billion) in terms of disposable funds. Comparatively, U.S.-based company Uber has 72.5 billion yuan ($11 billion).

Didi Chuxing intends to use the money from the fundraising for technology upgrades and big data research. The company will also use the funds to explore other lines of business that could be added to the services it offers.

Both Uber and Didi Chuxing have been building their funds in order to expand faster in many other countries as well as to create more jobs and recruit drivers. However, one of the biggest expenses for both companies is driver subsidies, as they try to offer lower fares to compete for market share.

Although Didi Chuxing is not as expansive as Uber, it has a strong hold on China. The company is valued at over 412 billion yuan ($62.5 billion).

The Chinese market has been targeted by Uber as well. Uber tried to grow its presence in China this year but Didi Chuxing raised money from powerful investors like Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. Didi is also backed by China's sovereign wealth fund. 

TagsUber, ride-hailing app, ride-hailing company, car sharing, Didi Chuxing, china, United States, Fundraising