China software company Freeborders gets US$20mln capital

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese software outsourcing firm Freeborders said on Monday it had secured a further US$20 million in expansion capital to build up an existing development centre in the southern city of Shenzhen.

Freeborders said in a statement that the money had come from new investor FTVentures, along with existing investors Internet Capital Group and TAL Investments.

Freeborders -- whose clients include Citigroup and DuPont -- told Reuters previously it would like to go public eventually, but has not given a specific timetable.

The firm is vying with the likes of US-based BearingPoint and Indian powerhouses Infosys Technologies and Tata Consultancy Services to tap a growing market for software outsourcing services from China.

Infosys had entered China over the past year, and expects to boost its presence there to 1000 engineers by spring.

BearingPoint also plans to boost its engineer headcount in the country to a few thousand in five years.

Tata employs about 250 people in China but has formed a software joint venture with the Chinese government and global software giant Microsoft that could serve as one of its major growth engines in the market.

China's software market has grown at an average of 39 percent annually and reached US$19.7 billion in 2003, according to official data. Exports make up a growing portion of the pie, accounting for about 10 percent in 2003.