Subscribe Sign In Feb 10, 2016,07:01pm EST Tech Investors from Spotify, Xiaomi, VY Capital and Horizons Bet On Study Abroad Site Student.com Steven BertoniForbes Staff CEO Network Forbes Senior Editor & VP covering CEOs, Tech, startups, finance, VC. China's emerging middle class is hitting the road. After decades of economic and political barriers, the winners of China's capitalist surge are using their cash and freedom to travel the world. Despite current Chinese economic crisis, China's travel market grew 19% in 2015, according to Barron's. The investment magazine, in a bullish article on China travel firm Ctrip, cited a report by Goldman Sachs that says China travel spending could triple to $200 billion by 2020--a number that would make it larger than the U.S. market. Now some top technology entrepreneurs are betting that the number of students studying abroad will follow that same steep trend line. On February 1o, Student.com--a housing marketplace for international students--scored $60 million from tech players like VY Capital's Alexander Tomas, Spotify founders Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon, Xiaomi's Hugo Barra and Li Ka Shing's Horizons Ventures. VY Capital led the combined Series B and C round. Founded in 2011 by U.K. born, Shanghai-based entrepreneur Luke Nolan, Student.com connects international students with safe, long-term lodging. Last year, the site booked $110 million worth of stays. The company has 200 employees from 35 nationalities and offices in London, Shanghai, New York and Hong Kong. In 2015, Student.com housed students from 100 different countries in apartments across more than 420 different cities. While the majority of Nolan's customers come from China, he sees fast growth in India, South Korea and Nigeria. "Students are traveling more, and whether it's for study abroad or for their masters degrees, they are more mobile than ever," says Nolan. "Their parents want them to travel and gain international experience." For Student.com, winning over mom and dad is key. Trust and safety are a huge factor. "Often our customers have never been to the city, their parents don’t speak the language, and they don’t have the time or money to visit before they move in," says Nolan. "That means we need to make them feel comfortable with making this decision on our site." That takes both sales and software. To win over the supply side, Nolan's sale people visit cities to introduce the brand to colleges, landlords, student unions, professors and local governments. On the student side, simplicity and transparency are paramount. The Student.com's platform gives customers--and their parents--a simple interface to search for a place, enter payment info, and work out logistics like travel and moving. A few clicks finds you a studio in Sydney (AU$ 330 / month) or a double in Dubai (AED 743 / month). After you find lodging, Student.com uses an algorithm to pair roommates and neighbors with have similar interests and habits. "It’s a complicated industry, and that’s the fun part of it," says cofounder Shakil Khan, who as Spotify's head of special projects helped build the music platform into a global player. "You have the whole world and this movement of millions of people, but when you think about opportunities, student housing isn’t the first one you that comes to mind. Every company says its global--but this truly is." Nolan says Student.com will use the fresh capital and the international experience of its new investors to expand its current offerings and open more markets in the U.S., South America, Middle East and, of course, Asia. "We used to focus on Asian students traveling to the west," says Nolan. "Now we see the travel moving in the opposite direction." Steven Bertoni I lead the Forbes CEO Network and cover leadership, technology, startups, entrepreneurs, investing, and finance. Write the Forbes CEO... Read More Reprints & Permissions Cookies on Forbes YOUR CHOICES REGARDING COOKIES ON THIS SITE Please choose whether this site may use cookies or related technologies such as web beacons, pixel tags, and Flash objects ("Cookies") as described below. You can learn more about how this site uses cookies and related technologies by reading our privacy policy linked to below. Your choices on this site will be applied globally. This means that your settings will be available on other sites that set your choices globally. You can change your mind and revisit your preferences at any time by accessing the "Cookie on Forbes" button on the left side of this site. While we need to use required cookies to make our site work, we won't set optional cookies unless you enable them. 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