China’s Didi raises $1.5 billion in debt ahead of IPO

Didi Chuxing is raising $1.5 billion of debt financing from banks as the Chinese ride-hailing giant seeks to expand its firepower ahead of a potential U.S. initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter.

Didi, backed by SoftBank Group Corp., has signed a revolving loan facility with JPMorgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs Group Inc., HSBC Holdings Plc, Barclays Plc and Citigroup Inc., the people said. A debt deal would serve as a stepping stone as Didi continues to evaluate a potential listing that could value the firm at about $100 billion, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private.

Representatives for Beijing-based Didi and the banks declined to comment.

After raising a loan, Didi would follow the footsteps of other sharing economy companies in seeking a listing. In February, Southeast Asia’s ride-hailing giant Grab Holdings Inc. closed its first senior secured term loan facility, which was upsized to $2 billion from $750 million planned initially due to strong investor interest. Grab is in advanced talks to go public through Altimeter Capital’s first blank-check company, people familiar with the matter have said.

Didi is stepping up efforts to grow its presence in strategically important sectors like autonomous driving as it prepares to go public in what could be one of the largest tech IPOs globally this year.