Smartphone maker Xiaomi gets VC funding

BEIJING - China's smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp has secured $90 million in a venture capital fund-raising less than two months after its popular budget smartphone hit the market.

The latest round of fund-raising attracted foreign investors such as IDG Capital, Temasek Holdings and Qualcomm Inc, and brought the total investor financing to $130 million for the 18-month-old firm, company officials said Wednesday.

Foxconn, the primary Apple product supplier, will become a supplier to Xiaomi from January 2012, officials added.

Founded by Chinese Internet guru Lei Jun, Xiaomi Corp aims to make high-end performing smartphones with affordable prices. The company's first phone, which cost only 1,999 yuan ($313) or less than half the price of an Apple Iphone 4, sold more than 300,000 units since it hit the market on Oct 20, officials said.