Chinese lidar firm Hesai sets terms for $171 million IPO

(Bloomberg) – The Hesai Group, a Chinese developer of sensor technologies used in self-driving cars, plans to raise up to $171 million in a U.S. IPO.

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The Shanghai-based startup is offering 9 million American escrow shares at $17-$19 apiece, according to a stock exchange filing Thursday, confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg News.

Hesai could sell up to 10.35 million ADS if an over-allotment option is exercised in full, for potential proceeds of up to $197 million.

The offering makes Hesai one of the first Chinese companies to launch US IPOs this year, ushering in a wave of listings building on the recent market boom. Such listings slowed to a trickle amid an audit spat between the two countries’ regulators and pessimism about China’s economy due to its restrictive Covid policies.

US-listed Chinese equities got off to a flying start in 2023, with the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index up 22% year-to-date.

Founded in 2014, Hesai develops and manufactures lidar sensors for autonomous driving and robotics applications. The company’s investors include Chinese search engine Baidu Inc., smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp. and the German mechanical engineering group Robert Bosch GmbH.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse Group AG and Huatai Securities Co. are arranging the Hesai offering.

(Updates throughout with prospectus.)

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