(Yicai Global) Aug. 22 -- Leapmotor Technology, which has delivered more cars than Nio this year, has been given the green light to become the fourth Chinese new energy maker to go public in Hong Kong.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission has approved the auto manufacturer's initial public offering application, the regulator said recently in a statement.

The Zhejiang province-based firm will issue up to 290 million new shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Moreover, it will covert the existing 790 million shares held by its 59 shareholders to Hong Kong dollar-denominated shares. The plan is to have the equity trade on the Main Board. The firm submitted its IPO application to the HKEX in March. 

Leapmotor will use 40 percent of the IPO proceeds to develop new vehicle models, as well as technologies related to autonomous driving, batteries, as well as motor and electric control systems, according to the prospectus. A quarter of the funds should be used to hike Leapmotor's production capacity. Another quarter will be spent on expanding new businesses and raising public’s brand awareness on its products including opening a flagship store in Europe next year. Some 10 percent will be earmarked for operations and general corporate purposes.

Founders of Dahua Technology, which is the world’s second-biggest intelligent video surveillance device supplier, set up Leapmotor in 2015. The auto firm produces and sells smart NEVs priced between CNY150,000 and CNY300,000 (from USD21,973 to USD43,899). It has three vehicle models so far.

Last month, Leapmotor's deliveries exceeded 12,040 while sales broke another record for the third straight month. From January to July, deliveries mounted to almost 64,040, surpassing those of Nio and ranking fourth among Chinese auto startups.

The sponsors of the upcoming IPO are China International Capital, CitiBank, JPMorgan Chase, and CCB International.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi