One of China's largest drone manufacturers is reportedly planning to list a portion of its shares on NASDAQ to raise as much as $200 million. According to reports citing sources with knowledge of the matter, Guangzhou-based tech firm EHang has apparently submitted a confidential application with NASDAQ for its initial public offering (IPO).
The company is reportedly looking to list around 10 to 15 percent of its shares to raise its target amount.
The company has yet to be publicly valued and it is not yet clear how much exactly it will be selling its shares when it goes public. However, one of the sources has claimed that a 15 percent share of the company should be sufficient to reach its $200 million IPO goal.
The same sources also revealed that the company is busy ironing out the details of its planned IPO. This includes discussion and ongoing deliberations on the exact timeline, fundraising size, and other details of its IPO. According to the sources, the company has already approached both Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse Group to assist it in its efforts.
Both EHang and NASDAQ have declined to comment on the reported share-sale plans. The banks named by the source have also not yet denied or confirmed the reports.
EHang was originally founded in 2014 as a company that specializes in the development and manufacturing of drones for commercial applications and aerial photography. The Chinese firm was able to establish a partnership with DHL-Sinotrans International Air Courier as its supplier of drones for its last-mile delivery needs in china.
The company also famously struck a deal with grocery chain operator Yonghui Superstores to provide it with drones for aerial grocery and food deliveries. Earlier in the year, EHang became the first company to get approval from the Civil Aviation Administration in China to test its autonomous aerial passenger drones.
After it got approval from the aviation agency, the company then began making low-altitude flights in Guangzhou. The company's autonomous drones were even able to ferry passengers over short distances within the capital of the southern coastal province in Guangdong.
EHang also managed to strike a partnership with the Austrian company FACC to mass-produce its passenger drones. Both companies plan to build more than a hundred units of autonomous flying vehicles, which may eventually be used as flying taxis. Ehang has managed to gain global attention with its concept of autonomous flying taxis, thanks to numerous videos of its vehicle going viral online.
