CHINESE streaming service iQiyi plans to hire over 200 staff in Singapore, its new international headquarters, in the next few years, its vice-president for the international business, Kuek Yu-Chuang, told The Business Times in an interview on Tuesday.

Mr Kuek was speaking on the back of iQiyi's launch of its Singapore office, which will serve as its regional headquarters. Located at 71 Robinson Road, the office space is close to 8,000 sq ft.

"We will be expanding (into) a whole range of functions here. For our company, we come with content, so content is going to be a big part of the functions that are here in Singapore. In addition to that, we will also have sales, marketing and business development . . . making sure we are engaging global audiences," Mr Kuek said.

Founded in 2010, iQiyi is one of the most popular streaming services in China, where it has 104.8 million subscribers as at end-September. The company began its overseas expansion in June 2019, with its international app offering content and search functions in regional languages such as Thai, Bahasa Indonesia and Vietnamese.

Besides Singapore, iQiyi also has offices in several South-east Asian cities - Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta and Manila - as well as in Dubai and Toronto, Canada.

Speaking at the Singapore office launch via video conference, iQiyi chief executive Gong Yu expressed optimism about the growth of the business outside China.

GET BT IN YOUR INBOX DAILY

Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.

Sign UpVIEW ALL

"Despite the current global climate in 2020, we see an opportunity for iQiyi international services to grow at an even faster rate in the coming year. We have been growing and expanding our international team - not just in Singapore, but in the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand as well. We will continue to place our international audience first," he said.