Zeekr Seeks Global Investors Interest Ahead of Upcoming IPO

Zeekr, the premium electric vehicle (EV) brand of Chinese automaker Geely, will meet with global investors beginning in August to gauge interest in a US$1 billion IPO, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.

According to two sources, the company is hoping that the share sale will result in a valuation of more than US$13 billion, which was achieved during a private US$750 million funding round in February. Hangzhou-based Zeekr will meet investors over two weeks in Hong Kong, Singapore, London, New York, Boston, California and the Middle East, the people said. They stated that the final transaction size would be determined by financial market conditions later this year.

The individuals did not want to be identified because the information had not yet been made public. Geely, which handles Zeekr's media inquiries, declined to comment. Geely announced in December that Zeekr had filed for a US IPO on a confidential basis, without specifying the size or listing date.

If successful, a US$1 billion IPO would be the largest US listing by a Chinese company in more than two years, since Didi raised US$4.4 billion in mid-2021.

Valuations of new Chinese share sales in the United States have since stalled as Chinese authorities tighten their scrutiny of domestic firms seeking to list abroad.