China Auto Rental to revive stock offering
China Auto Rental Holdings Inc., the country's biggest car-rental provider, revived plans for a U.S. initial public stock offering and seeks as much as $400 million (2.49 billion yuan), said people with knowledge of the matter.
China International Capital Corp., Credit Suisse Group AG and Morgan Stanley are arranging the share sale, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The offering may start in the second half, one of the people said.
China Auto Rental, which counts Hertz Global Holdings Inc. and Legend Holdings Corp. as investors, is seeking funds to expand its fleet in China. The Beijing company, which scrapped a proposed IPO almost two years ago, also lists Warburg Pincus as a shareholder, according to China Auto Rental's Web site.
Last August, Chairman Charles Lu said he was leaning toward taking the company public in Hong Kong. Company officials couldn't immediately comment on the stock issue.
At the end of last year, China Auto Rental had 720 service outlets in 69 Chinese cities, with more than 1 million individual customers and nearly 10,000 corporate clients. Former soccer star David Beckham is featured on the company's Web site to promote its services.
Chinese companies and their shareholders have raised $3 billion through U.S. initial offerings this year, more than triple the amount for all of 2013, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. JD.com Inc., the Chinese online retailer, raised $1.8 billion after pricing shares above a marketed range, according to a statement.
China Auto Rental in April 2012 postponed plans for a U.S. listing, citing adverse market conditions. The company plans to increase its fleet from about 55,000 vehicles to 100,000 by 2016, Lu said in an interview in August.
China Auto Rental, which counts Hertz Global Holdings Inc. and Legend Holdings Corp. as investors, is seeking funds to expand its fleet in China. The Beijing company, which scrapped a proposed IPO almost two years ago, also lists Warburg Pincus as a shareholder, according to China Auto Rental's Web site.
Last August, Chairman Charles Lu said he was leaning toward taking the company public in Hong Kong. Company officials couldn't immediately comment on the stock issue.
At the end of last year, China Auto Rental had 720 service outlets in 69 Chinese cities, with more than 1 million individual customers and nearly 10,000 corporate clients. Former soccer star David Beckham is featured on the company's Web site to promote its services.
Chinese companies and their shareholders have raised $3 billion through U.S. initial offerings this year, more than triple the amount for all of 2013, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. JD.com Inc., the Chinese online retailer, raised $1.8 billion after pricing shares above a marketed range, according to a statement.
China Auto Rental in April 2012 postponed plans for a U.S. listing, citing adverse market conditions. The company plans to increase its fleet from about 55,000 vehicles to 100,000 by 2016, Lu said in an interview in August.
