Zeekr Intelligent Technology Holding

History

2024

Blocking of electric vehicles unofficially imported into the Russian Federation from China

At the end of December 2024, it became known that Zeekr, a premium division of the Chinese Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, began blocking electric vehicles unofficially imported into Russia from China. On the screen of the onboard media center of such machines, a message appears about the need to contact the official dealer.

In July 2024, information appeared that Zeekr plans to block multimedia systems in electric vehicles released for the domestic market of the PRC, if they are operated in other countries. It was said that when the car leaves the service area specified in the contract for its purchase, the owner will be asked to return the vehicle to China. It was emphasized that if this notification is ignored, the system will disable the screen functions and prompt the user to seek help from Zeekr.

𝓲

Фото: Freepik

It was also said that the lockdown is being introduced "to ensure the safety of customers with the provision of vehicles that comply with local laws and requirements through an official distributor." In December 2024, reports began to arrive about the real blocking of Zeekr electric vehicles, including in Belarus. On the screen of such machines, a message is displayed: "You need to contact the official dealer." At the same time, the vehicles themselves remain in fully operational condition. In one of the car dealerships, after negotiations with Chinese partners, Zeekr managed to unlock the cars.

We have already unlocked one Zeekr. The second is in the process. The mistake jumped out as soon as the cars crossed the Chinese border, - said representatives of the car dealership.

To remove the lock after receiving the appropriate approval on each specific car, you need to ensure that the on-board computer is connected to the Internet. To do this, you need to insert a SIM card.^[1]

Entering the American Stock Exchange

In May 2024, Chinese electric car maker Zeekr entered the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), placing its American Depositary Receipts (ADR) there under the ticker symbol ZK. As part of the IPO, the company sold 21 million securities at a price of $21 apiece and thereby earned $441 million.

At the time of the start of trading, Zeekr's market capitalization amounted to $5.13 billion.

𝓲

Фото: Zeekr

As a result of the Zeekr offering, Geely Group founder Li Shufu owns 74.6% of Zeekr, and Zeekr CEO An Tsunhui owns 2.8%.

According to Reuters, Zeekr planned to go public in November 2023, but in the end the company decided to postpone the IPO due to discrepancies in its own capitalization estimates with investors. At that time, the automaker expected to raise about $1 billion thanks to the listing. Thus, in reality, the IPO was not as successful as the company originally planned. At the same time, if underwriters exercise their additional placement right, the circulation of the issue will be increased to ADR 24.15 million, and investments from the IPO will grow by another $60 million.

At the same time, according to Zeekr CEO An Conhui, the company set a record for the fastest time from launch to IPO among electric car manufacturers: it took only 37 months to list on the NYSE. Zeekr's secret lies in the combination of Geely Group's expertise in car manufacturing and global resources, according to An Conhui.

By May 2024, the Zeekr range includes four models: Zeekr X crossover, Zeekr 001 liftback, Zeekr 007 sedan and Zeekr 009 minivan. Soon the company will also release the Mix MPV and the CX1E crossover. The company plans to spend the funds earned from the IPO on the development of new technologies for electric cars.^[2]

2022: Establishing a company

On October 31, 2022, it became known that the Chinese company Geely Automobile was creating an independent structure for the production of cars with an electrified power plant. We are talking about the transformation of the current division of Zeekr Intelligent Technology Holding into a new company.

The division was created in March 2021 with the aim of developing electric vehicles capable of competing with Nio and Tesla models. In January 2022, a collaboration between Zeekr and Mobileye was announced: the project involves the introduction by 2024 of fourth-level autonomous driving equipment, which involves fully automatic control of the vehicle, but still requires the presence of a person in the driver's seat.

Geely divides its division into a stand-alone company

It is reported that Geely's decision to spin off Zeekr Intelligent Technology Holding as an independent company has already received approval from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. However, the conditions of this procedure have not yet been determined - a platform for placing securities, the size of the offer and the price range.

Zeekr's first electric car - the Zeekr 001 all-wheel drive Shooting Brake class sports car - entered the Chinese market in October 2021. In addition, an electric minivan Zeekr 009 is being prepared for release, which is due to debut in early 2023. These machines are based on the Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) platform, a modular architecture for electric vehicles developed by Geely. By the way, it is it that is used in Polestar 5 and Polestar 3 electric cars.

It is also noted that Zeekr intends to significantly strengthen its position in the electric car market in the coming years. By 2025, Zeekr expects to sell up to 650 thousand cars per year, of which about 100 thousand will be supplied to the international market.^[3][4]

Notes