China-based bicycle rental service Hello has withdrawn from a planned initial public offering in the United States that would have allowed Ant Group, e-commerce firm Alibaba’s financial services affiliate, to exit.
Hello’s app-focused offering allows users to rent bicycles, but it has expanded into adjacent mobility services such as carpooling and had expressed interest in adding ride hailing and local services to its platform.
Although Hello did not give a reason for its decision, it follows a series of regulations imposed by the Chinese government on domestic tech companies. It had filed in April this year to float on the Nasdaq Stock Market having made a $174m net loss in 2020 from $926m in revenue.
The company had raised more than $2.1bn as of a $582m round led by Ant Group in 2018 that also featured investment firm Primavera Capital Group and undisclosed existing backers, reportedly valuing it at $2.3bn.
Some 15 investors reportedly divested their stakes in Hello the following year, including conglomerate Fosun, electric vehicle manufacturer WM Motor and Bertelsmann Asia Investments, a corporate venturing vehicle for media group Bertelsmann.
