Baidu joins with Coatue, KKR in Uxin funding

The leading Chinese search engine Baidu Inc has entered the country's burgeoning car market with a joint investment in an online secondhand car trading platform.

Baidu, US-based private equity firm KKR & Co LP and Coatue Management Ltd, a US-based hedge fund, have jointly invested $170 million in China's largest online used car auction company Uxin Ltd.

The $170 million is the latest round of funding raised by Uxin to expand a new trading platform designed to allow auto retailers to sell used cars to individuals, said a joint statement from the companies.