Chinese autonomous driving firm WeRide taps banks for Hong Kong listing, sources say

By Yantoultra Ngui and Kane Wu SINGAPORE/HONG KONG (Reuters) -Chinese autonomous driving firm WeRide has hired Morgan Stanley and China International Capital Corp (CICC) to 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, said in a filing to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission late on Tuesday that the China Securities Regulatory Commission has issued a notice of filing regarding the proposed global offering and dual primary listing of its class A ordinary shares in Hong Kong. The notice of filing means the Chinese securities regulator has given the deal its go-ahead. The company has filed confidentially to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for the listing, the sources said. COMPANY HOPES TO COMPLETE LISTING BY YEAR-END, SOURCE SAYS WeRide is aiming to complete the listing in December, said one of the sources and a fourth person with knowledge of the matter. The offering size will likely be about $300 million if the company issues 10% of new shares, said one of the sources. The company's valuation in the Hong Kong listing would be in line with where it is in the U.S., two of the sources said. The Nasdaq-listed company had a market value of about $2.9 billion as of Tuesday's market close after the share price fell 1.3%. The company said in the filing it has a total of 938.4 million ordinary shares outstanding, comprising 883.6 million class A ordinary shares and 54.8 million class B ordinary shares, excluding any shares to be issued under the proposed offering. It said there is no assurance whether or when the offering or listing will be completed. WeRide did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment on Wednesday. "WeRide is unable to comment on queries regarding a potential listing," the company said in an earlier emailed statement to Reuters on Tuesday. "We remain focused on executing our business strategy and delivering value to our stakeholders." Morgan Stanley said it had no comment. CICC did not respond to Reuters requests 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 25% so far this year to trade at $10.62 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 and Uber. 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 northern Singapore 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) (Reporting by Yantoultra Ngui in Singapore and Kane Wu in Hong Kong; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Kim Coghill)

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