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A WeRide autonomous taxi is seen in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China May 15, 2020. Picture taken May 15, 2020. REUTERS/Yilei Sun/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
- WeRide hires Morgan Stanley, CICC for Hong Kong secondary listing
- Its market value stands at $3 billion, shares down 24% this year
- WeRide partners with Grab and Uber for autonomous vehicle services
SINGAPORE/HONG KONG, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Chinese autonomous driving firm WeRide
(WRD.O), opens new tabhas hired Morgan Stanley
(MS.N), opens new taband China International Capital Corp (CICC)
(601995.SS), opens new tabto work on a dual primary listing in Hong Kong, three sources with knowledge of the matter said.
The Guangzhou-based company, which listed on Nasdaq in October 2024, is seeking regulatory approval in both Beijing and Hong Kong for the share sale after filing confidentially with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the sources said.
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Details of the offering, including its size, have not been finalised, said two of the sources. The Nasdaq-listed company has a market value of about $3 billion as of Monday's market close.
"WeRide is unable to comment on queries regarding a potential listing," the company said in an emailed statement to Reuters on Tuesday. "We remain focused on executing our business strategy and delivering value to our stakeholders."
Morgan Stanley declined to comment. CICC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The sources did not wish to be identified as the matter was private.
Some U.S.-listed Chinese companies are seeking to raise capital via secondary listings in Hong Kong. Such moves have been driven partly by concern over potential forced delistings of Chinese companies from U.S. exchanges since trade relations between the world's two largest economies deteriorated sharply this year.
Confidential filings allow firms to navigate the regulatory review process without public disclosure, offering flexibility when listing timelines are uncertain.
Founded in 2017, WeRide develops autonomous driving technology and operates robotaxi services in China and internationally, according to its official website and announcements.
WeRide shares have fallen about 24% so far this year to trade at $10.76 apiece.
It reported total revenue of 127.2 million yuan ($17.8 million) in the second quarter, up 60.8% from a year earlier, while its net loss narrowed slightly to 406.4 million yuan from 413.6 million over the same period, according to its latest earnings release in July.
The company has partnerships with ride-hailing firms Grab
(GRAB.O), opens new taband Uber
(UBER.N), opens new tab.
Grab announced in August that it had committed a strategic equity investment in WeRide and would work with the company to deploy robotaxis and autonomous shuttles in Southeast Asia.
Grab and WeRide are preparing to launch an autonomous vehicle service in Singapore's Punggol district in 2026.
Uber and WeRide have partnered to bring autonomous vehicles to the Uber platform.
Grab said it is not in a position to comment on WeRide's listing plans. Uber did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
($1 = 7.7771 Hong Kong dollars)
($1 = 7.1363 Chinese yuan renminbi)
(This story has been corrected to change secondary listing to dual primary listing in paragraph 1)
Reporting by Yantoultra Ngui in Singapore and Kane Wu in Hong Kong; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
Yantoultra Ngui is the Southeast Asia Deals Correspondent of Reuters in Singapore, covering M&A and capital market activities in a region that is fast emerging as one of the world’s biggest economies. He previously was a reporter at Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). Notably, he was part of WSJ's team that covered the financial scandal at Malaysian state fund 1MDB, and that won SOPA Excellence in Breaking News award for the coverage of the assassination of Kim Jong Nam, the half-brother of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, in Malaysia in 2018. Yantoultra graduated with an MBA in Finance from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) in 2010.
Kane Wu covers M&A, private equity, venture capital and investment banks in Asia. She tracks the region's most high-profile deals, fundraisings as well as investment trends amidst geopolitical, macroeconomic and regulatory changes. She was nominated for a SOPA Excellence in Business Reporting award for coverage of China regulatory crackdown in 2021. Prior to Reuters, she worked at the Wall Street Journal and also wrote about Asia's loan market for Thomson Reuters Basis Point. She is based in Hong Kong.
