China's Tuya is poised to raise US$915m in US IPO

[HONG KONG] Tuya, a software company backed by New Enterprise Associates and Tencent Holdings, is on track to raise US$915 million in a US initial public offering priced above its marketed range, said a person familiar with the matter.

The company on Wednesday told prospective investors it would sell American depositary shares for US$21 each, the person said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private. Tuya had marketed 43.59 million shares for US$17 to US$20 each.

At US$915 million, the listing will be the second-biggest US IPO this year by a Chinese company, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, after RLX Technology raised US$1.6 billion in January.

The shares, representing one Class A common share, would give the company a market value of US$11.8 billion based on the outstanding stock listed in its filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

IFR first reported the share price guidance on Wednesday. A company spokesperson declined to comment.

The company's cloud computing platform is used by businesses to deploy, connect and manage large numbers and different types of smart devices, according to its filings. Tuya said it plans to use the IPO proceeds for research and development, investment in tech and infrastructure and other general corporate purposes.

Tuya had a net loss of US$67 million on revenue of US$180 million in 2020.

The offering is being led by Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and China International Capital Corp. The shares are expected to begin trading Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TUYA.

BLOOMBERG