Car tech firm ECARX to go public in $3.8 bln blank-check deal (updated)

Ecarx Holdings.

26/05/2022 12:25

(Adds investment details)
    May 26 (Reuters) - ECARX Holdings Inc said on Thursday it
would go public through a merger with a blank-check firm in a
deal that values the automobile technology company at $3.82
billion.
    The deal with COVA Acquisition Corp  COVA.O  includes a $45
million investment from mobility tech company Geely Holding
Group, lidar sensor maker Luminar Technologies Inc and
automotive company Lotus Technology.
    It is also supported by $300 million raised by COVA
Acquisition in its initial public offering (IPO) in February
last year.
    With facilities in China and Europe, ECARX focuses on
technology used in car chips, high-definition maps and smart
vehicles. The company was founded by Ziyu Shen, its chief
executive officer, and Li Shufu, Geely's chairman, in 2017. 
    A blank-check firm, or a special purpose acquisition company
(SPAC), is a listed shell entity that uses the money raised in
its IPO to merge with a private company, taking it public in the
process. 
    Chinese listings in the United States have been frozen for
months, as Beijing and U.S. regulators have been locked in a
dispute over the latter's demand for complete access to the
books of U.S-listed Chinese companies.


 (Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh
Kuber and Vinay Dwivedi)
 ((Niket.Nishant@thomsonreuters.com;))