(Yicai Global) March 18 -- Vision Plus Capital said it has raised more than USD400 million for its third fund, securing most of the USD450 million overall target it set in just the first round of fundraising.

Investors included well-known sovereign wealth funds, tech industry groups, international pension funds, renowned entrepreneurs and family foundations, the Hangzhou-based firm said today. Due to an enthusiastic reception, the total amount raised will likely now exceed the original goal, it added.

Despite the Covid-19 epidemic, a number of Chinese venture capital firms recently completed financing for US dollar funds before Vision Plus, reflecting international investor confidence in China's economic prospects.

Culture and media investment titan CMC Capital Partners raised USD950 million for its third-issue US dollar fund, it said on Feb. 25, while Kinzon Capital exchanged about USD100 million worth of yuan-denominated assets for a US dollar fund with Hong Kong's TR Capital, according to an statement it made on Feb. 17.

Vision Plus founder and Chairman Wu Yongming, who was also a co-founder of Alibaba Group Holding, said the capital market is going through a hard time, but Vision Plus is quite optimistic about the long-term development potential of China's digital economy. The firm will continue to position itself in the country's innovative tech field, he added.

The money for the new fund brings the total value of assets under management at the venture capital firm, which has invested in more than tech 100 startups, to over USD1.2 billion. Set up in 2015, Vision Plus has invested in businesses such as social networking software provider Tantan, fresh food e-commerce marketplace MissFresh and intelligent speech developer AI Speech.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Peter Thomas