Kaisi Rushes to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange: Another Company Files for an IPO After Dissolving VIE

Ask AI · Why is the dismantling of the VIE structure a key step for Kaisi’s listing in Hong Kong stocks?

Potentially the “First Listed Company in the Automotive Aftermarket Enterprise-Level Digital Intelligence Platform in Hong Kong Stocks.”

According to early IPO news, Casstime Holdings Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Kaisi”) officially submitted its prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on April 2, 2026, aiming for a main board listing, with China International Capital Corporation serving as the sole sponsor.

This means that Kaisi may become the “First Listed Company in the Automotive Aftermarket Enterprise-Level Digital Intelligence Platform in Hong Kong Stocks.”

Notably, Kaisi is also the latest company since April to submit its IPO prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange after completing the VIE structure dismantling—on September 27, 2019, Kaisi Shenzhen, Shenzhen Kaisi, and/or all shareholders at that time signed a series of agreements related to the variable interest entity (VIE) contract arrangements.

On January 28 of this year, Kaisi Shenzhen signed an equity transfer agreement with registered shareholders—first, all registered shareholders (except Beijing Huisheng Yuanye and Beijing Fenxiang) transferred their entire equity in Shenzhen Kaisi to Kaisi Shenzhen at a nominal consideration of 1 RMB; second, Beijing Huisheng Yuanye and Beijing Fenxiang each transferred their respective equity in Shenzhen Kaisi to Kaisi Shenzhen for a consideration of 164,303 RMB, which equals the loan amounts previously granted by Kaisi Shenzhen to Beijing Huisheng Yuanye and Beijing Fenxiang, and is proportional to their shareholding in Shenzhen Kaisi’s registered capital. On the same day, Kaisi Shenzhen also signed a termination agreement with Shenzhen Kaisi and the registered shareholders. As a result, all rights, obligations, and responsibilities under the contractual arrangements were immediately terminated.

From 2016 to 2023, Kaisi completed a total of 14 funding rounds, with investors including Zhushi Investment, Huaye Tiancai, Sequoia Capital, Fosun, Zuoyu Capital, Fuchi Investment, Red Tree Capital, Shanghai Cooperation Capital, Source Code Capital, Sequoia China, H Capital, Greater Bay Area Joint Home Development Fund, Bosch Group, Wuhu Xinyin Ziyun New Energy Vehicle Industry Investment Fund Partnership, Shenzhen High-tech Investment, Xinghang Guotou, and other well-known institutions, industry players, and local state-owned assets. Additionally, Kaisi issued several warrants to InnoVen Capital (Yifeng Capital) and AVIC Trust.

Furthermore, on September 29, 2025, Kaisi issued convertible bonds to Shenzhen Longgang District Guidance Fund Investment Co., Ltd., with a maturity date of September 29, 2026, totaling 70 million RMB, with an annual interest rate of 6%. Of course, if Kaisi conducts a new round of financing raising no less than 170 million RMB and all shareholders agree to postpone the listing to no earlier than September 30, 2027, within six months after the conditions are met, bondholders have the right to convert the convertible bonds into the next round of redeemable convertible preferred shares.

Returning to Kaisi’s core business.

Founded in 2015, Kaisi is a digital intelligence platform dedicated to empowering China’s automotive aftermarket. Its core value lies in building AI-enabled digital infrastructure for participants in the automotive aftermarket value chain, helping them provide products and services intelligently and efficiently, and complete transactions.

According to Frost & Sullivan, Kaisi maintains a leading dual advantage in China’s automotive aftermarket industry—by 2025 GMV, Kaisi is China’s largest enterprise empowerment platform in the automotive aftermarket; by the number of registered auto service stores and geographic coverage, Kaisi has built China’s largest automotive aftermarket enterprise empowerment service network.

Specifically, Kaisi’s unique “F2B2b2C” business model connects all industry participants to streamline and optimize the automotive aftermarket value chain from upstream to downstream, achieving end-to-end efficient operations. (Note: F: OEMs and auto parts manufacturers; Big B or B: auto parts dealers; small b or b: auto service stores; C: car owners)

1. “B2b” – Kaisi Auto Parts. Kaisi was the first to adopt a B2b model to operate the auto parts trading platform “Kaisi Auto Parts,” helping auto service stores quickly search for and find matching auto parts for customer repair and maintenance needs, and complete procurement through intelligent matching algorithms that select qualified auto parts dealers.

As of December 31, 2025, Kaisi Auto Parts had over 375,000 registered auto service stores, supporting over 48 million SKUs, with a supply satisfaction rate exceeding 98.5%. In 2025, the average monthly active auto service store users on the Kaisi App increased by 10.7% to 155.8k. Also, in 2025, the monthly average number of visits per auto service store increased by 13.1% to 3.6 million times.

2. “F2B” – Kaisi Strict Selection. Based on real demand and transaction data from auto service stores on the Kaisi Auto Parts platform, and using Kaisi’s proprietary algorithms, Kaisi launched the “Kaisi Strict Selection” F2B auto parts procurement business. This involves accurately predicting and consolidating downstream market demand for long-tail, low-frequency auto parts, conducting bulk procurement from upstream OEMs and auto parts manufacturers, and reselling to auto parts dealers to meet their procurement needs. Kaisi Strict Selection enables OEMs and auto parts manufacturers to achieve more precise production scheduling, expand sales channels, and improve delivery efficiency, thereby providing auto parts dealers and auto service stores with a broader, traceable product selection to better serve customer needs.

As of December 31, 2025, Kaisi had linked 10 OEMs and 75 auto parts manufacturers, collaborating with 165 auto service dealers to create a customized supply product system, managing over 213k SKUs.

3. “b2C” – Kaisi Selection. As it accumulated more information on auto service stores nationwide, Kaisi launched a new B2C solution in 2025—Kaisi Selection—to certify auto service stores that meet its strict standards and empower them with standardized processes and digital tools, ensuring car owners receive consistent, high-quality service experiences. Meanwhile, Kaisi assists these stores with new media marketing to increase their exposure on major social platforms. Kaisi Selection helps strengthen customer stickiness and repurchase rates at Kaisi-certified auto service stores, thereby increasing platform transaction volume.

As of December 31, 2025, only nine months after launch, Kaisi had certified and served 146 auto service stores.

Additionally, Kaisi offers various value-added services and digital tools to enhance the digital service capabilities of participants in the automotive aftermarket, such as the intelligent auto service store management system “No. 1 Workshop,” which helps auto service stores digitize and standardize all operational aspects to improve efficiency and business performance.

Financial data: From 2023 to 2025, Kaisi’s revenue was 685 million RMB, 742 million RMB, and 930 million RMB respectively, with year-over-year growth rates of 8.3% in 2024 and 25.3% in 2025.

From 2023 to 2025, Kaisi’s gross profit margins were 27.0%, 29.7%, and 28.3%; additionally, its adjusted losses were 125 million RMB and 124 million RMB in 2023 and 2024, respectively, significantly decreasing by 64.0% to 45 million RMB in 2025.

Kaisi states in its IPO prospectus that the net proceeds from the offering will mainly be used to expand platform business; deepen product and service penetration across the industry value chain; advance globalization strategies; further develop AI technology applications and platform capabilities; pursue strategic acquisitions or investments in potential targets with synergies; and for working capital and general corporate purposes.