MUMBAI: Quikr, the Internet and mobile based classifieds leader, has attracted an investment of $32 million led by private equity firm Warburg Pincus.

Existing investors Matrix Partners India, Norwest Venture Partners and eBay Inc. also participated in this round of fund raising, which is the fifth and the largest round of capital raised by the parent company Quikr India.

Quikr is India’s leading horizontal classifieds platform with 17 million unique individuals and small businesses using it across 83 cities every month.

These individuals and businesses access Quikr to sell, buy, rent or find products and services in a variety of categories such as electronics, cars, bikes, real estate, services, jobs, education and entertainment.

Existing investors include Nokia Growth Partners and Omidyar Network, apart from those mentioned above.

Quikr Co-Founder and CEO Pranay Chulet said, "In the initial rounds of fund raising, we have already attracted some of the best investors across the globe. We are delighted to have a strategic partner like Warburg Pincus as we continue our journey forward. The current round, which is our largest to date, will enable us to diversify our offerings across both online and mobile platforms, intensify our product evelopment efforts and further strengthen our marketing capabilities."

The next decade is poised to present tremendous growth opportunities in the Internet sector in India, supported by a growing number of Internet users, increasing income levels and a young population.

Warburg Pincus India MD Nitin Nayar said, "We were impressed by the dynamism and the vision of Quikr‘s management team to further build on Quikr‘s leadership position as an innovative online marketplace. Globally, Warburg Pincus has been a leading investor in the technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) sectors for more than 25 years. We look forward to working closely with the management team to build on the company’s success and accelerate its growth plans."