By LIU Jiaxin
Hozon Auto, the parent company of EV marque Neta, is planning a Hong Kong IPO this month that would raise around US$1 billion (7.12 billion yuan), according to reports from Bloomberg. The company declined to comment when Jiemian News asked for verification.
Once completed, Hozon will become the fifth Chinese EV maker to go public, following Nio, XPeng, Li Auto and Leap Motor.
Hozon was founded in 2014 and is among the first Chinese EV startups. Its Neta EV was launched in 2018 and 300,000 have been delivered, half of them in 2022. From February to May, Hozon continues to deliver more than 10,000 vehicles every month.
About 20 percent of Hozon’s EVs are exported to Southeast Asia. In May, Hozon agreed to produce the Neta V in Thailand next year.
Internet Security company Qihoo 360 holds 10.7 percent of Hozon. According to 360’s financial report released in January, Hozon shares held by 360 are worth 1.2 billion yuan, which puts the valuation of Hozon at around 11 billion yuan.
