Chinese battery giant CATL has launched a public offering in Hong Kong that could raise at least HK$31.01 billion ($3.99 billion), marking the largest global listing so far this year.
According to its prospectus filed Monday, the electric vehicle battery maker is offering 117.9 million shares at a maximum price of HK$263 each. If investor demand triggers additional share options, the total fundraising could reach about $5.3 billion.
CATL’s share price in Shenzhen jumped 3.6 percent after news of the Hong Kong listing, reaching a six-week peak. That performance outstripped the 0.9 percent rise in China’s CSI300 index the same day.
The offering beats the previous 2025 record set by Japan’s JX Advanced Metal, which raised $3 billion in March, according to Dealogic data. In Hong Kong, it marks the largest fundraising event since Midea Group’s $4.6 billion deal last year.
Backed by over 20 cornerstone investors including Sinopec and the Kuwait Investment Authority, CATL has already secured about $2.62 billion in share commitments. Two sources with knowledge of the process said the institutional portion of the deal has already been covered, though the company declined to comment on investor interest.
In addition to the base offer, CATL has options in place to increase the share count by up to 35.4 million shares through a size adjustment mechanism and a greenshoe clause, potentially boosting proceeds by nearly $598 million.
Shares are expected to be priced between Tuesday and Friday, with the final offer price to be revealed on or before May 19. Retail investors in Hong Kong will have access to 8.8 million shares. Trading is set to begin on May 20.
CATL plans to spend approximately 90 percent of the proceeds, or HK$27.6 billion, on its new battery facility in Hungary. The factory is part of the company’s broader European expansion and will supply automakers including BMW, Stellantis, and Volkswagen.
The first phase of the plant, representing a 2.7 billion euro investment, is scheduled to begin production later this year, with work on the next phase expected to start before 2025 ends.
Despite pricing the Hong Kong shares slightly below the Friday close of its Shenzhen listing, CATL received a waiver from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange that allows it to avoid disclosing a minimum price. The company argued that such disclosure could affect the mainland stock’s performance.
U.S. onshore investors are barred from participating in the offering due to restrictions tied to CATL’s inclusion on a U.S. Defense Department list earlier this year. The list accuses several Chinese companies of links to China’s military. CATL denied the allegations in its filing and said it is working with the U.S. government to resolve the matter.
“This designation does not materially impact our operations, except for business with a limited number of U.S. government entities,” the company stated.
The listing comes at a tense moment in U.S.-China trade relations. While both sides reported progress in trade talks in Geneva over the weekend, steep tariffs remain in place. Washington currently imposes 145 percent tariffs on Chinese goods, while Beijing retaliates with 125 percent duties on U.S. imports.
“Given the pace of policy changes, we cannot fully predict the effects of trade restrictions and will continue to monitor developments,” CATL wrote in its prospectus.
CATL’s offering not only signals confidence in Hong Kong’s capital markets but also underscores the company’s ambition to expand beyond China’s borders despite geopolitical headwinds.
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