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Zhaogang.com operates a digital platform specializing in B2B steel transactions, providing a comprehensive online marketplace. The company connects third-party steel buyers and suppliers, offering integrated services that streamline procurement, sales, and logistics across the entire value chain, aiming to digitalize and enhance efficiency.
Dong Wang founded the company in 2012. His core insight identified significant inefficiencies and fragmentation in the conventional steel market. Wang envisioned a centralized online hub to rationalize these dynamics, enabling direct, transparent interactions among industry stakeholders, thus modernizing a historically manual sector.
Zhaogang.com serves diverse steel industry participants, including manufacturers and purchasers, across mainland China and international markets like the UAE, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Korea. The company's vision is to evolve into a holistic industrial digital platform, continuously expanding its integrated services to support the global steel value chain's needs.
Zhaogang.com has raised $2.8M across 2 funding rounds.
Zhaogang.com has raised $2.8M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Zhaogang.com has raised $2.8M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Zhaogang.com's investors include ZhenFund.
Zhaogang.com has raised $2.8M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $2.0M Series B in December 2012.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 1, 2012 | $2M Series B | — | ZhenFund | Announced |
| Jun 1, 2012 | $790K Series A | — | ZhenFund | Announced |
Zhaogang.com is China’s largest B2B e-commerce platform specializing in steel trading. Founded in 2012, it connects steel manufacturers, traders, and end-users by providing a comprehensive digital marketplace that facilitates real-time pricing, inventory management, logistics coordination, and financial services. The platform serves a broad range of stakeholders across the steel value chain, including buyers, sellers, retailers, warehouses, and logistics providers, addressing inefficiencies such as information asymmetry and high transaction costs in traditional steel trading. Zhaogang.com has demonstrated strong growth momentum, with transaction volumes reaching over 37 million tons in 2024 and revenues exceeding RMB 30 billion in recent years. It has also expanded internationally to markets aligned with China’s Belt and Road initiative, including South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, and the UAE[1][2][3].
Zhaogang.com was founded in early 2012 by Wang Dong in Shanghai. Wang identified the fragmented and inefficient nature of China’s steel trading market and envisioned a digital platform to streamline transactions and improve transparency. Early traction came from successfully integrating multiple stakeholders in the steel supply chain and leveraging venture capital backing from prominent investors such as IDG Capital, Sequoia Capital, and China Renaissance Private Equity Fund. The company started turning a profit by 2016 and rapidly scaled its operations, growing its workforce to over 1,400 employees across 29 Chinese cities. The strategic push into overseas markets began around 2015, reflecting ambitions to become a regional leader in steel e-commerce[1][3].
Zhaogang.com rides the global trend of digital transformation in traditional industries, specifically the digitization of commodity trading and supply chains. The timing is critical as China’s steel industry, historically opaque and fragmented, increasingly demands efficiency, transparency, and integration with global markets. Market forces such as rising demand for steel, government initiatives like the Belt and Road, and advances in e-commerce infrastructure favor platforms like Zhaogang.com. By pioneering steel e-commerce, Zhaogang.com influences the broader ecosystem by setting standards for digital trading, encouraging innovation in logistics and finance, and promoting cross-border trade connectivity in the steel sector[1][2].
Looking ahead, Zhaogang.com is poised to deepen its market penetration both domestically and internationally, leveraging its IPO capital and technological capabilities to enhance platform services. Trends shaping its journey include increased automation, AI-driven supply chain optimization, and expanding financial products tailored to steel traders. Its influence may evolve from a national leader to a regional powerhouse in steel e-commerce, potentially integrating more advanced technologies like blockchain for traceability and smart contracts. Continued alignment with China’s strategic initiatives and global trade dynamics will be crucial for sustaining growth and competitive advantage[1][2][3].
