Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Benzinga
Benzinga
Business
Anusuya Lahiri

Geely Acquires Major Stake in Smartphone Maker Which Has Alibaba Connection

  • Billionaire Li Shufu controlled satellite-to-automobile group Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd (OTC:GELYY), purchased a majority stake in Chinese smartphone maker Meizu Technology Co, the Caixin Global reports.
  • Geely's Hubei Xingji Shidai Technology Co division bought a 79% stake in Meizu from Meizu's founder and a unit of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA).
  • The financial terms of the transaction remain undisclosed.
  • Adding a smartphone maker comes as cars graduate from mere forms of transport into electric, internet-connected, and autonomous vehicles, Bloomberg reports.
  • Xingji Shidai, with Li as its principal investor, forayed into the mobile devices sector in September 2021, citing close connection in technologies within intelligent vehicle cockpits and smartphone software technologies.
  • Multiple leading Chinese tech companies forayed into the autonomous and electric car space, with Xiaomi Corp (OTC: XIACY) planning four EVs and commercializing automobilesBaidu, Inc (NASDAQ:BIDU) and Geely invested $700 million into their EV joint venture Jidu.
  • Alibaba invested in Meizu to tap the lucrative smartphone arena. However, Meizu met aggressive competition from Xiaomi, Huawei Technologies Co, and Oppo. 
  • Price Action: BABA shares traded lower by 3.74% at $102.20 premarket on the last check Tuesday.
Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.