Following Nio, another Chinese EV maker appears to be preparing to list on the capital markets to raise much-needed funds to boost mass production, at a time when Tesla’s China-made vehicles are just around the corner.
Beijing-based electric vehicle maker Lixiang, a new brand name of the company known as CHJ Automobile, plans to build a Variable Interest Entity (VIE) structure to go public overseas, Chinese pump producer LEO Group revealed in a filing with the Shenzhen Stock Exchange on Tuesday.
Between 2016 and 2017, LEO invested RMB 450 billion (USD 68.2 million) in total to hold 68.6 million shares, representing a nearly 7.5% stake in CHJ Automobile. This will be translated as equal shares in a Cayman Islands-registered firm linked with CHJ Automobile.
Before this filing emerged, KrAsia reported that the EV maker is seeking a USD 500 million fundraising round. Meituan founder Wang Xing said he pledged to invest almost USD 300 million from his own funds. ByteDance said it might pour in USD 30 million. However, it’s not clear whether this will be the company’s pre-IPO round.