(Yicai Global) April 14 -- Lu Zhengyao, a major shareholder in Ucar, has agreed not to sell at least some of his shares in the company, which is the biggest investor in China’s largest car leasing firm and a secondary victim of the Luckin Coffee scandal, China Auto Rental.

Lu and three other shareholders have agreed to hold onto 156 million shares, or about 5.8 percent of equity in Ucar, the firm said in a statement yesterday. It is in talks with several potential buyers for the shares it holds in CAR but has not got to discussions of finer details, the company added.

Shares in CAR plummeted by more than half earlier this month after Luckin Coffee, in which Lu is the largest shareholder and chairman, confessed its chief operating officer had tacked CNY2.2 billion (USD310 million) onto its 2019 sales figure. CAR stock [HKG:0699] was unmoved at HKD2.01 (26 US cents) when the market closed for lunch.

Lu holds a more than 10 percent stake in Ucar, which in turn holds 17.48 percent of CAR, according to Ucar’s 2019 interim report. Recent rumors had suggested travel giant Trip.Com or automaker Geely Automobile Holdings may acquire CAR, though both denied the claims.

Ucar also revealed yesterday in a joint statement with carmaker BAIC Group that the pair would work together in vehicle purchasing, auto retail, big data and financial services. Ucar has bought equity in Beijing Borgward Automobile, a unit held by BAIC subsidiary BAIC Foton Motor, though BAIC has not said whether or not it plans to invest in Ucar.

Editor: James Boynton