(Yicai Global) April 19 -- Chinese internet-based medical insurer Waterdrop applied for an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange on April 17, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission said.

The insurer, in which Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings owns a 22 percent stake, did not disclose the amount of funds it hopes to raise but speculation last year put it at around USD4 billion.

Waterdrop plans to use the money to expand its operations as well as further develop its healthcare services and insurance businesses, according to the IPO prospectus.

Waterdrop runs commercial insurance brokerage platform Waterdrop Insurance Mall and medical crowdfunding platform Shuidichou. Last month it shut down its online mutual-aid business Shuidi Huzhu, which offers financial aid for medical treatment by getting members to club together and share expenses equally, as regulators toughen their stance on the entry of internet-based firms into peripheral fields without the necessary permits.

The Beijing-based company’s losses doubled last year to CNY664 million (USD101.7 million) from 2019 yet its revenue also doubled to CNY3 billion (USD463.8 million), according to the prospectus. The vast majority of this income, around CNY2.7 billion, came from its online insurance platform Shuidibao, part of the Waterdrop Insurance Mall, which brought in CNY14.4 billion (USD2.2 billion) of new premiums.

The firm is most well-known for its insurance-charity site Shuidichou which, while non-profit earning, was the main driver of online traffic to the Waterdrop Insurance Mall. Last year around 13 percent of new insurance policies were directed from the Shuidichou site and in 2019 23 percent.

Operator Beijing Zongqing Xiangqian Science and Technology has raised over USD400 million in the last two years. In March 2019 it secured CNY500 million (USD76.6 million) in B-round financing, a further CNY1 billion (USD153 million) in C-round financing in May 2019 and last August closed a D-series worth USD200 million.

Founder, Chief Executive and Chairman Shen Peng, who is also co-founder of group-buying platform Meituan, holds 26.4 percent equity, followed by Shenzhen-based Tencent. Other major shareholders include private equity firms Boyu Capital and Gaorong Capital as well as the world’s second-largest reinsurer Swiss Re-Insurance with 11.9 percent, 6.5 percent and 5.7 percent stakes respectively.

Editor: Kim Taylor