EV Maker WM Motor to Raise $300 Million in D1 Financing

WM Motor, an EV firm in China’s mainstream market, on October 5 announced that it expects to amass over $300 million in a Series D1 round of financing, led by PCCW Limited and Shun Tak Holdings Limited.

The company further expects that a few other international investors will join in Series D2, bringing total fundraising to approximately $500 million.

The proceeds will be used for the development of autonomous driving and other smart technologies and products, as well as the expansion of its sales and service channels for users.

“The estimated total amount financed during this round resembles the largest single investment from the private equity community towards the mainland China EV market during the past 12 months. We will launch our latest sedan model in mid-October, further revealing our technological strengths and bringing our smart user experience to the next level,” said Freeman H. Shen, Founder and CEO of WM Motor.

WM Motor was established in 2015, focusing on the mainstream market in which new vehicles range from 150,000 to 250,000 yuan (approximately $23,250 to $38,750). The EV maker operates two fully self-owned and highly automated factories in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province and Huanggang, Hubei Province.

Since deliveries of its W6 model began in April 2021, WM Motor has successfully enlarged its offering to the market and expanded its reach to a wider range of consumers. A record-setting 29,043 vehicles were sold between January to September 2021, exceeding the firm’s entire full-year sales for 2020.

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The Shanghai-based company has raised capital on 12 separate occasions, as its filing to the STAR Market shows. As of late 2020, Baidu Inc. owned 3.67% of its shares, Tencent Mobility Ltd. had 1.54% and SAIC Motor held 1.45%. The company started the listing process for Shanghai’s STAR Market in September 2020 and completed pre-listing work in January, before reports in April that the firm had postponed the IPO.