Sequoia-backed Chinese EV startup lands $665m in its series B round

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) startup Leapmotor announced that it has secured 4.3 billion yuan (US$665.4 million) in a series B round from Hefei government fund, SDIC Chuangyi, Hangzhou Jiuzhi Investment Management, and Shanghai Yonghua Capital Management.

Photo credit: Leapmotor

Founded in 2015, Leapmotor has developed three models of its EVs: C11, T03, and S01. The Hangzhou-based firm said that it had sold 3,024 EVs in December 2020, increasing by 49% from a month earlier. It also recorded 11,391 cars in gross sales volume last year.

The company is preparing to go public on the Shanghai Stock Exchange Star Market in late 2021 or early 2022, Leapmotor co-founder and CEO Wu Baojun told a Chinese media outlet.

In 2018, Leapmotor raised 400 million yuan (US$61.9 million) in a pre-series A round led by Sequoia Capital China and 2.5 billion yuan (US$386.9 million) in a series A round from Shanghai Electric, China Industrial Secs, and Sequoia Capital China.

It was followed by a 360 million yuan (US$55.7 million) series A2 fundraising from Jinhua Zhongche Fund in August 2019, which valued the EV startup at around 71.1 billion yuan (US$11 billion).

According to a report by S&P Global, EV sales in China could hit 1.8 million units in 2021, jumping by 40% from the previous year. Sales growth is also projected to be steady in the next five years and could reach 30 million units by 2025. Major players in the EV market include Li Auto, Nio, and Xpeng, which are all trading on Nasdaq in the US.

Currency converted from Chinese yuan to US dollar: US$1 = 6.46 yuan.