China's top ride-hailing firm Didi Chuxing has mandated Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to lead its blockbuster initial public offering, two people with knowledge of the matter said.
Didi, backed by Asian technology investment giants SoftBank, Alibaba and Tencent, is looking to list as soon as July, according to the people.
It is eyeing a valuation of at least $100 billion through the IPO. At that valuation, Didi could raise about $10bn if it sells 10 per cent of its shares, making it the biggest Chinese IPO in the US since Alibaba's $25bn float in 2014.
Beijing-based Didi's selection of the two banks shows it is moving forward apace in its listing plans and that the US capital pool remains a big draw for Chinese companies despite heightened tensions between the world's two-largest economies.
It also shows that for Wall Street titans, flotations of Chinese firms represent a growing business opportunity.
Didi, Goldman and Morgan Stanley declined to comment. The sources declined to be named as the information is private.
Last year, Chinese companies raised $12bn in US listings, more than triple the fundraising amount in 2019, according to Refinitiv data.
Nine-year-old Didi was considering Hong Kong for its IPO last year as US-listed Chinese firms faced heightened scrutiny and more strict audit requirements from US regulators, while geopolitical tensions escalated between Beijing and Washington.
Didi later dropped that plan and has picked New York as the listing venue partly due to concerns that a Hong Kong IPO application could evoke more regulatory scrutiny over Didi's business practices.
Didi has opted for New York also because of a more predictable listing pace, the presence of comparable peers like Uber and Lyft and a deeper capital pool, said the people.
The move comes even as the Securities and Exchange Commission is pressing ahead with a plan that would kick foreign companies off American stock exchanges if they do not comply with US auditing standards.
Didi, which merged with then main rival Kuaidi in 2015 to create a smartphone-based transport services giant, counts as its core business a mobile app, where users can hail taxis, privately owned cars, car-pool options and even buses in some cities.
The company was valued at $56bn in a 2017 fundraising and its valuation exceeded $60bn a year later, sources have said.
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
In 2018, the ICRC received 27,756 trace requests in the Middle East alone. The global total was 45,507.
There are 139,018 global trace requests that have not been resolved yet, 55,672 of these are in the Middle East region.
More than 540,000 individuals approached the ICRC in the Middle East asking to be reunited with missing loved ones in 2018.
The total figure for the entire world was 654,000 in 2018.
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Fast%20X
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What's in the deal?
Agreement aims to boost trade by £25.5bn a year in the long run, compared with a total of £42.6bn in 2024
India will slash levies on medical devices, machinery, cosmetics, soft drinks and lamb.
India will also cut automotive tariffs to 10% under a quota from over 100% currently.
Indian employees in the UK will receive three years exemption from social security payments
India expects 99% of exports to benefit from zero duty, raising opportunities for textiles, marine products, footwear and jewellery
Sui Dhaaga: Made in India
Director: Sharat Katariya
Starring: Varun Dhawan, Anushka Sharma, Raghubir Yadav
3.5/5
