Chinese billionaire Li Shufu is on a fundraising blitz as he pursues ambitious goals for his global automotive empire.
Smart car technology company Ecarx Co., whose backers include Li and his Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., is considering seeking a U.S. listing via a merger with a blank-check company, according to people with knowledge of the matter. A deal could value the business at about $4 billion, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private.
Separately, Geely is talking to advisers about a potential funding round for its commercial vehicles unit that could value it at as much as $4 billion, people familiar with the matter said. The round could raise a few hundred million dollars, one of the people said.
Li is seeking to raise billions of dollars through share sales at home and abroad, as technologies such as electric vehicles and autonomous driving reach critical mass and spur enormous shifts in the automobile universe.
Even though Geely retreated from pursuing a listing on Shanghai’s Nasdaq-style Star Board last year, companies in Li’s orbit have been busy tapping investors.
Polestar, the EV maker founded by Volvo Car AB and its owner Geely, plans to go public in a $20 billion merger with a U.S. SPAC this year. Volvo Car itself raised $2.3 billion in a Stockholm initial public offering in October.