Investments from funds owned by the Li Ka-shing and Stanley Ho families show that they are bullish on WM Motor, the company's CFO said.
(Photo source: WM Motor)
After recently closing a D1 round of funding, WM Motor is leaning toward an overseas IPO, Zhang Ran, CFO and partner of the Chinese electric vehicle startup, said in an interview with The Beijing News on Friday.
WM Motor announced on October 4 that it expects to raise a total of $500 million in new funding in rounds D1 and D2.
The D1 round of more than $300 million was led by Hong Kong-based PCCW and Shun Tak Holdings, with participation from GF Xinde Investment Management's investment arm, according to the company.
After the completion of the D1 round, WM Motor will sign a D2 round of financing with other leading international investors, the company said.
Notably, PCCW and Shun Tak Holdings are owned by the Li Ka-shing and Stanley Ho families, and their investment in WM Motor has generated a lot of interest.
Zhang said in the interview that the investment shows their bullishness on WM Motor and that the company will tend to go public overseas as the next step.
However, Zhang also said that the timetable and progress details of WM Motor's IPO are not ready to disclose now, but it is being promoted in an orderly manner.
The registered capital of WM Motor's operating entity, WM Motor Smart Travel Technology (Shanghai) Co, was reduced by 42.99 percent from RMB 1.209 billion to RMB 689 million on September 13, information from data provider Tianyancha shows.
Local media cls.cn reported on September 15 that WM Motor is making adjustments to its shareholding structure and will likely raise a new round of financing in the fourth quarter in preparation for an overseas listing.
WM Motor also previously planned to list on China's Nasdaq-style sci-tech innovation board, also known as the STAR market, and had made preparations in January. But there has been no progress since then.
In mid-April, Chinese media reported that WM Motor's listing process on the STAR market had been put on hold, possibly due to heightened requirements for technology attributes of candidate companies by the review board.
WM Motor reportedly adjusting equity structure in preparation for overseas IPO
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