Update (April 6, 3:12 p.m. SGT): Added funding amount and additional investors. 

The Parentinc, which operates parenting community platform TheAsianparent, has raised US$22 million in its series D funding round led by East Ventures.

TheAsianparent founder and CEO Roshni Mahtani/ Photo credit: TheAsianparent

The round is made up of a mixture of primary and secondary investments as well as venture debt. Investors including Central Retail Corporation (CRC) and WHG Holdings also took part, while the venture debt was raised from DBS.

The latest investment will be used for The Parentinc’s portfolio expansion in Thailand, as it is one of the company’s “stronghold markets.” The deal will also help to increase the online and offline synergies of both The Parentinc and CRC.

With its beginnings as an online blog, TheAsianparent has grown to become a social network that serves as an information resource for parents in the region. The Parentinc also operates direct-to-consumer brand Mama’s Choice, which manufactures pregnancy, nursing, baby care, and household products for Asian families.

See also: $20m in sales with no funding: How a Singapore baby ecommerce brand did it

The Parentinc will use the fresh funds to expand its parenting community and direct-to-consumer brand into three additional markets by the end of 2022.

CRC sees the deal as an opportunity to expand in the mom and kids segment, which it sees as a “high-potential market.” The retailer will leverage The Parentinc’s 35 million users through the latter’s content on health, tips for new parents, family planning, child development, and child care.

“With EV’s (East Ventures’) expertise and pristine track record in creating unicorns across Asia, we look forward to simulating their successes and deepening our presence in Indonesia and across the region [Southeast Asia],” said The Parentinc founder Roshni Mahtani Cheung.

Last month, The Parentinc told Tech in Asia that it had added Line Southeast Asia, the VC arm of Japanese messaging platform Line, to its cap table of investors. While The Parentinc didn’t confirm the amount of funds raised, VentureCap Insights pegs the deal at US$8 million.