Chinese Ride-Hail Startup Didi Prepping US IPO

China’s ride-hail behemoth Didi Chuxing is going public with Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, Reuters reported on Friday (April 9), citing sources.

The mobile transportation platform just notched $1.5 billion of debt financing, Bloomberg reported, as it looks ahead to a U.S. initial public offering (IPO). The Softbank-backed startup has signed on with JPMorgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, HSBC Holdings, Barclays, and Citigroup, Reuters reported per sources.

Didi also recently signed a revolving loan facility as it mulls a possible public listing that could give the company a valuation of roughly $100 billion, sources told Bloomberg. Didi hopes to publicly list as soon as July, according to the sources.

The company is tracking to be China’s biggest in the U.S. since Alibaba’s $25 billion float seven years ago. That Didi picked Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley is an indication that the situation is appealing to Chinese companies despite elevated tensions between the countries.

Didi Chuxing said in February that it is planning to bring its ride-hailing services to Western Europe, a move that could up the company’s valuation ahead of a planned IPO.

Last year, Chinese companies notched $12 billion in U.S. listings. Didi announced plans for an initial IPO in March.

Companies in China raised $12 billion in U.S. listings, more than triple confidential IPO filings, per Bloomberg. Founded about a decade ago, Didi Chuxing had been considering Hong Kong for its IPO in 2020.

Didi Chuxing dangled the notion of a public listing in March and was looking to raise as much as $9 billion. The move would have upped its valuation to $62 billion. The ride-hailing giant is also looking to expand the development and testing of its autonomous technology. Didi recently closed a funding round that brought in $300 million for the unit.