ZEEKR set a new record for the fastest IPO of a new car-making force, and the capital territory of "Dageely" was expanded again

Reporter Yang Rangchen and Quartz Jing report from Shanghai

With the listing of ZEEKR, the capital territory of "Dajili" is accelerating its expansion.

The reporter of "China Business Daily" learned from the new car-making force Zeekr that it was officially listed on the New York Stock Exchange on May 10 with the stock code "ZK". As a luxury intelligent pure electric brand under Geely Holding Group (hereinafter referred to as "Geely"), ZEEKR was released on April 15, 2021 and successfully landed on the New York Stock Exchange a few days ago, taking only 37 months, setting a new record for the fastest listing in the history of new energy vehicle companies.

ZEEKR said that this is based on Geely's solid industrial foundation and global superior resources accumulated in 37 years of development. "On this basis, ZEEKR has quickly built a complete pure electric intelligent technology ecosystem, and opened up the 'ZEEKR mode' of the third track of pure electric development."

It is understood that due to the oversubscription, ZEEKR expanded the scale of the IPO, and issued a total of 21 million ADS (American Depositary Shares) at a price of $21 per share, raising about $441 million. ZEEKR said that if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment rights, the size of the offering will be further expanded to 24.15 million ADSs, raising about $507 million.

Relevant information shows that ZEEKR closed at $28.26 per share on the first day of listing, up 34.57% from the issue price. At the closing price, the market value of ZEEKR has reached 6.9 billion US dollars, equivalent to more than 50 billion yuan.

With the successful listing of ZEEKR, the number of listed companies of "Dajieli" has increased to 9, but the capital territory of "Dajieli" will continue to expand in the future. The reporter noted that at present, there are a number of companies under Geely that are "preparing" for IPO, and Geely's travel company Cao Cao Travel has submitted a form to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange a few days ago.

The capital territory was further expanded

From 2021 to 2023, under the pressure of multiple factors such as price wars, lack of expensive electric cores, and subsidy declines, ZEEKR will continue to refresh records and lead the industry.

At present, ZEEKR has launched five new models, including the new luxury hunting coupe, the new ZEEKR 001 and its high-performance version, the pure electric hunting supercar, ZEEKR 001 FR, the original pure electric luxury MPV ZEEKR 009 and the four-seat ultra-luxury flagship MPV ZEEKR 009, and in 2024, ZEEKR will also launch a new medium and large pure electric SUV.

As of the end of April 2024, ZEEKR has delivered more than 240,000 vehicles, and from January to April this year, a total of nearly 50,000 vehicles have been delivered, achieving a year-on-year growth of more than double, and continuing to rank first in the sales of China's high-end pure electric brands with more than 200,000 yuan.

The expansion of the market size has significantly promoted the growth of ZEEKR's revenue. According to the prospectus data, from 2021 to 2023, ZEEKR's revenue will increase significantly. In 2021, ZEEKR's revenue was 6.527 billion yuan, and in 2023, ZEEKR's revenue has increased to 51.673 billion yuan, an increase of nearly 7 times in 2023 compared with 2021, and an increase of 62% compared with 2022.

The diversified revenue structure composed of vehicle sales, electric business, R&D and other services also reflects the balanced and comprehensive development trend of ZEEKR in various business areas. In terms of gross profit margin, in 2021, the first year of the brand's release, the gross profit margin of ZEEKR vehicles will be positive, reaching 15% in 2023, an increase of 10.3 percentage points year-on-year from 4.7% in 2022.

The outstanding core competitiveness has also made ZEEKR gain the favor of capital. It is understood that since its establishment, ZEEKR has been supported by industrial capital and well-known institutions such as CATL, Intel and Intel. In this listing, the old shareholders continue to subscribe firmly, fully recognizing the long-term value of ZEEKR.

In the eyes of industry insiders, this listing will also greatly enhance the brand awareness and international image of ZEEKR. "This IPO will help ZEEKR establish a more complete industrial layout and business closed loop in the global market, and further enhance its market competitiveness." According to Jiang Han, a senior researcher at Pangu Think Tank, "going public in the United States is also an important step in ZEEKR's internationalization strategy, which will help ZEEKR to have a deeper understanding of the needs and trends of the international market and further expand its international market share." ”

In addition to accelerating the pace of listing of its subsidiaries, Geely has also invested in a number of well-known automobile companies around the world to accelerate the pace of internationalization.

The reporter noted that as early as 2018, Geely took a stake in Daimler, the parent company of Mercedes-Benz, and subsequently became its important shareholder. In 2021, Geely and Volvo jointly created the electric vehicle brand Polestar, which was listed on the NASDAQ, and in the same year, Geely also promoted Volvo's listing in Sweden. In 2023, Geely will take a stake in the ultra-luxury car brand Aston Martin.

"Dajilie" system force synergy

Taking ZEEKR as an example, compared with other new car-making companies, as a latecomer, how can ZEEKR catch up?

This is precisely because of Geely's system strength and its own differentiated strategic route, ZEEKR has embarked on an unusual development path for new energy vehicle companies. "ZEEKR is built on the entire Geely platform, multi-resource support and technical precipitation, and has the ability to do the most difficult things." An Conghui, President of Geely Holding Group and CEO of Zeekr Intelligent Technology, said bluntly that Zeekr is not created from scratch, but is built under the entire "Great Geely" system, forming a strong foundation for electrification and intelligence and vehicle manufacturing capabilities.

An Conghui said in an interview with the media after the listing of ZEEKR that the manufacturing capacity of ZEEKR is shared with Geely, "The factory has invested more in the past ten years, in full accordance with the latest standards, and under the collaboration of 'Geely', ZEEKR can quickly improve capacity utilization and reduce costs." ”

"In addition to production capacity, in terms of procurement, ZEEKR also has advantages. ZEEKR is a joint procurement, and Geely's vast architecture is shared by multiple brands. An Conghui further said that in this context, the administrative scale effect appears, the price is different, and Zeekr has a cost advantage, "which other brands do not have."

The results of taking advantage of Geely's system strength have also emerged. "ZEEKR has achieved '3 800', '800-volt car, 800-volt power battery, 800-volt energy network'." An Conghui said, "ZEEKR is currently winning the competitiveness of products and technologies, not only in terms of vehicles, but also in the formation of vertical integration capabilities in the entire industrial chain. ”

Zhang Xiang, a visiting professor at the Yellow River Institute of Science and Technology, told reporters that in the context of the current price war, active innovation and accelerated iterative updating of products are the magic weapons for the success of car companies. "Only by continuously leading the industry can we keep prices firm, and ZEEKR will maintain innovation and technological leadership, give full play to Geely's capital, technology and brand advantages, and be able to maintain a favorable position in the market."

Geely is also further strengthening the strategic synergy of its various brands. "Since last year, Geely has increased strategic synergy, which has brought a very positive effect on the development of various brands." An Conghui said that the current manufacturing sharing and joint procurement are the main representatives of collaboration. "Geely's synergy also plays a good role in the participation of various brands under the control of the market in the market."

Accelerate the global layout

"The automotive industry has to be international and global. The listing of ZEEKR is not only a strategic arrangement, but also a very important step in the globalization of ZEEKR. An Conghui said in an interview with reporters that ZEEKR's product technology will definitely go to sea, and this year's ZEEKR target is to sell 230,000 vehicles throughout the year, of which 30,000 are overseas markets. At present, ZEEKR's products are already sold in the Netherlands and Sweden in Europe, and in 2024, the number of ZEEKR markets in Europe will increase to 8. In addition, before this year's Beijing International Auto Show, ZEEKR has signed sales contracts with more than 50 countries, and it is believed that there will be more than 50 emerging markets by the end of this year, which will have a good impact on the company's sales. ”

In fact, the global layout of ZEEKR is also inseparable from Geely. An Conghui said in an interview with the media after the listing of ZEEKR that the globalization of ZEEKR is actually based on Geely's long-term persistence and investment accumulation in the past 30 years of automobile business, "which has formed a better condition for the ZEEKR brand, and it is not something that ZEEKR can complete in 3 years."

Li Donghui, CEO of Geely Holding Group, also said a few days ago that Zeekr's positioning as a luxury intelligent pure electric brand is an important part of Geely's electrification, high-end and globalization. "The ZEEKR IPO is a microcosm of Geely Holding Group's overall strategic plan. With electrification and intelligent transformation as the core, Geely has made strategic layouts in cutting-edge technology fields such as new energy technology, human-computer interaction, intelligent driving, on-board chips, and low-orbit satellites, providing strong support for the growth of its sub-brands. ”

To this end, ZEEKR has increased R&D investment in technology research and development. Relevant information shows that in the past three years, ZEEKR has invested nearly 17 billion yuan in research and development. In the future, ZEEKR will continue to increase its investment in R&D, and about 45% of the funds raised from this IPO will be used to develop more advanced pure electric vehicle technology and expand its product portfolio.

At the same time, Chen Qi, vice president of ZEEKR, also said in an interview with the media that ZEEKR's intelligent driving team is growing rapidly, "In order to launch the best products for everyone, the resources of the entire team are inclined to intelligent driving, so as to win more with less and win slow with fast."

China's new energy vehicle market is seriously "involuted", and ZEEKR is constantly breaking through with its own super products and technical strength. The reporter noted that in the current Chinese auto market, car companies are competing for market traffic by means such as price wars and the participation of car company CEOs in live broadcasts.

However, An Conghui previously said in an interview that traffic cannot be the only one for the success of a brand or a company, "As the CEO of the company, time and energy are limited, and it is more important to put more time on products, technologies, and users."