Nezha, an electric vehicle (EV) subsidiary of China-based automotive manufacturer Hozon Auto, raised RMB4bn ($625m) yesterday in a series D1 round led by cybersecurity technology provider Qihoo 360 Technology.
CCB International Asset Management, Citic Securities, GF Venture Capital and Shenwan Hongyuan Securities’ New Energy Industrial Fund filled out the round, which was secured at a post-money valuation of $4bn according to a Qihoo 360 stock exchange filing seen by DealStreetAsia.
Qihoo 360 invested about $313m through the round and now holds a 16.6% stake in Nezha as its second largest shareholder, the same filing showed.
Founded in 2014, Hozon is working on artificial intelligence algorithm-powered automotive technology. It launched its first mass-produced EV model, dubbed Nezha N01, in 2018, and the second and third iterations, Nezha U and Nezha V, in March and November 2020 respectively.
Qihoo 360 had already led a $463m series D round for Hozon in April this year. It had closed a series C round led by HD Capital four months before at an undisclosed figure reportedly above the $459m target it had set for the round.
Hozon had previously secured $446m in an April 2019 series B round led by a state-backed fund at a $1.1bn valuation that included similarly unnamed strategic investors, taking its total funding to over $1bn. Mobility technology provider Zenity Mobility had participated in a $195m round for the company two years earlier.
