Chinese autonomous driving firms Pony.ai and WeRide to list in Hong Kong
A Pony.ai AION robot taxi was displayed at the 21st Shanghai International Automobile Industry Expo held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai on April 23, 2025.
Wang Zhao | Afp | Getty Images
Autonomous driving companies pony.ai And WeRide It has received approval from China’s securities regulator for secondary listings in Hong Kong as companies look to raise funds and continue their global expansion.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission announced on Tuesday that both companies have applied to issue and list shares in Hong Kong. Chinese companies wishing to enter a foreign listing must apply to the CSRC in advance; Thus, regulators have the final say on whether the company can go public abroad.
Pony.ai and WeRide, currently listed in the United States, could each issue about 102 million new shares for their Hong Kong listings.
WeRide has approached Morgan Stanley and China International Capital Corporation to work on the listing, according to Reuters report. Neither WeRide nor Pony.ai immediately responded to CNBC’s inquiry about their IPO plans.
Pony.ai CEO James Peng told CNBC in July that the company was exploring a Hong Kong listing. Peng said Hong Kong would offer “proximity” to China, the company’s main market, which would attract the interest of many investors.
Pony.ai and WeRide, both headquartered in Guangzhou, are among a growing wave of Chinese companies seeking secondary listings in Hong Kong, in what is a recovery year for the city’s IPO market.
Chinese companies’ intention to dual-list comes as autonomous vehicle companies expand their presence into new regions, including the Middle East, Europe and Asian countries such as Singapore; However, they have not yet received full approval to operate their robotaxis in most of these regions.
In the US, both companies have partnered with Uber in hopes of deploying their robot axes on the firm’s ride-hailing platform once it receives approval. In China, they have started using fully autonomous robotaxis, which are available through their own apps in major cities.
Companies have smaller fleets of autonomous vehicles compared to more established players. baiduApollo Go in China and AlphabetWaymo in the US
Pony.ai launched its IPO in November at a price of $13 per share – shares have gained more than 60% since then. WeRide debuted on Nasdaq in October 2024, with the IPO pricing at $15.50 per share, and its shares have lost over 30% so far.
