Updates with details from para 2 onwards
Nov 27 (Reuters) - Pony AI said on Wednesday it had raised $260 million in its U.S. initial public offering, valuing the China-based robotaxi company at around $4.55 billion.
It sold 20 million American depositary shares in the offering priced to investors at $13 each, the high-end of its targeted range.
Pony AI's listing may show how U.S. investors approach China-based companies under Donald Trump's administration, especially as the two biggest economies in the world vie for dominance in high-stakes industries such as autonomous driving.
The company is set to join a growing cohort of China-based firms tapping U.S. capital markets following the resolution of a longstanding accounting dispute between the two countries.
Other China-based companies, including EV maker Zeekr ZK.N and peer self-driving tech firm WeRide WRD.O, also went public in the U.S. earlier in the year. Zeekr is trading 6.5% higher than its IPO price, while WeRide is up nearly 13%.
The Toyota Motor 7203.T-backed company's valuation has come down from the $8.5 billion two years ago.
But the automotive sector's focus on disruptive technologies has led to interest from investors like Uber UBER.N, who Bloomberg News reported as planning to invest in the IPO.
Pony AI, which will begin trading on the Nasdaq later on Wednesday, also raised an additional $153.4 million in concurrent private placement.
Goldman Sachs, BofA Securities, Deutsche Bank, Huatai Securities and Tiger Brokers were the underwriters for the IPO.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant and Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Tasim Zahid)
((Niket.Nishant@thomsonreuters.com))
Comments