Didi Chuxing mulls HK initial public offering

Hong Kong

CHINA'S top ride-hailing firm Didi Chuxing is considering Hong Kong for a multibillion-dollar initial public offering (IPO) next year, people with knowledge of the matter said, rethinking previous aims to list in New York amid rising Sino-US tension.

Didi, backed by technology investment giants SoftBank, Alibaba and Tencent, has started initial talks with investment banks for the long-awaited IPO, according to three people who spoke on condition of anonymity. The sources said the Beijing-based company is targeting a valuation of more than US$60 billion by the time of launching the IPO, expected as soon as in the first half of 2021.

Founded eight years ago, Didi has begun generating healthy profit since the second quarter of the year; and some of its investors are now keen to cash in, said one of the sources.

The IPO plan is at an early stage and could change due to market conditions, the sources cautioned. Didi is also considering a new fundraising round ahead of the IPO in a bid to boost its valuation, two of the sources said.

Didi had for years aimed for a US IPO because of the prestige of a New York listing. But it has now opted to consider Hong Kong amid deteriorating US-China relations that have left tech firms like TikTok owner ByteDance in the crosshairs. REUTERS