$DiDi Global Inc.(DIDI)$If DiDi delists, there are essentially three possible outcomes for investors: a share buyback, share transfer, or share limbo.

In a buyback scenario, the Chinese company could purchase its shares back from investors at a price agreed upon by shareholders—effectively going private. If the company wishes to go public again, it would do so in a separate listing in the likes of Hong Kong.

In a share transfer scenario, investors would swap their ADR for the Chinese company’s foreign stock. In the case of DiDi, which doesn’t have a secondary listing, would need to first launch a listing—in Hong Kong or Shanghai, for instance— to establish both a home for its foreign stock and mechanism for the transfer of ADRs.

If DiDi doesn’t buy back shares, but rather delists and doesn’t launch another listing, the ability to trade its shares would be in limbo. Investors would still own equity in the company, but they’d be unable to trade their stock on regulated exchanges. They could sell their shares in over-the-counter markets—with limited liquidity—or hold on to them until a suitable listing was launched.