Smart, the electric car subsidiary brand jointly owned by Mercedes-Benz and Geely, announced plans to raise between $250 million and $300 million in its Series A financing round. This round of fund raising is led by a Chinese company Tianqi Lithium, with an investment plan of 150 Million USD.
The announcement does not provide details about other participants in the financing round, indicating that the round is still ongoing and the final amount has yet to be determined. However, both partners Mercedes-Benz and Geely support the fund-raising plan and will remain equal controlling shareholders in smart, and are highly confident in the brand’s future development.. The exact distribution of shares is unknown as the search for additional investors is still in progress.
Following the comprehensive renewal of brand, product and business model, smart has entered the new era of full-speed global operation in 2023. With smart #1 officially launched and delivered in China, Germany and France, the first member of smart’s new generation all-electric product portfolio has received widely recognition of global markets and media. Meanwhile, the official launch of the brand’s first coupé-style SUV, the all-new #3 was witnessed on Jun. 1st in China, and the delivery was kicked-off after only 20 days. The #3 will be launched in European markets as well in early 2024.
Tong Xiangbei, the global CEO of Smart Automobile, expressed gratitude for the support from Mercedes-Benz and Geely, stating that it has allowed Smart to accelerate its global development and business operations. Tong also welcomed strategic investments from industry leaders like Tianqi Lithium, expressing confidence that this move will expand Smart’s horizons and strengthen their future plans to enhance the brand’s competitiveness in global markets.
According to the announcement, Smart delivered 23,540 electric cars in China during the first half of the year, including the first deliveries of the #3 model since June. In Europe, the first batch of the #1 model was delivered in March, and Smart anticipates that deliveries will soon increase to a new level. The Smart #3 model is scheduled to launch in the European market in early 2024.
