(Yicai Global) June 24 -- Shares of Xpeng Motors, one of this year's top-sellers among Chinese new energy vehicle startups, rose after the firm was given the green light for a secondary offering in Hong Kong.

Shares of Xpeng [NYSE: XPEV] closed 4.1 percent up at USD41.61 in New York yesterday, after which they were 0.3 percent up in after-hours trading.

The Hong Kong Stock Exchange announced yesterday that the Guangzhou-based carmaker's proposal to issue 80.75 million shares has been approved. JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America Securities will be the joint sponsors of the share offering.

The Chinese company intends to raise as much as USD2 billion from the issuance that could take place as early as this year, Bloomberg reported yesterday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Founded in 2014, Xpeng was listed on the New York Stock Exchange on Aug. 27, 2020. The initial public offering price was USD15 per share. The stock price hit an all-time high of USD72 last November.

Xpeng is moving toward profitability. The NEV maker narrowed its net loss by 26 percent to CNY2.7 billion (USD416.9 million) in 2020 from 2019. Its revenue nearly tripled to CNY5.8 billion. In the first quarter of 2021, its net loss was CNY787 million (USD121 million) and revenue CNY2.9 billion.

The improving performance goes hand in hand with deliveries. From January to May, the company delivered nearly 24,200 vehicles, up more than five times from a year ago, ranking second among Chinese NEV startups.

The founder stands to gain from the new listing. He Xiaopeng, chairman and chief executive officer of Xpeng, as well as parties acting in concert, have a nearly 21.8 percent stake in Xpeng, according to the latest listing application. Taobao China Holding has 11.9 percent of the equity, and IDG Capital 4.8 percent.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi