China’s Full Truck Alliance Prepares for First Step Beyond Home

Full Truck Alliance Co. is preparing to expand into Central Asia after getting its wings clipped by domestic regulators a few years ago, joining a growing number of Chinese tech companies seeking new markets abroad. 

The SoftBank Group Corp.-backed firm, which connects truckers with customers looking to ship goods, is also considering floating its cold-chain grocery business in Hong Kong, or eventually a second listing for the entire company, Chief Financial Officer Simon Cai said.

For now, growing the international arm is the priority, though it intends to expand prudently. New York-listed FTA could work with local partners or invest alone as it spreads beyond China, Cai told Bloomberg News, adding that the company has considered expanding in other regions including Southeast Asia. 

“We are relatively cautious and will move step by step,” Cai said in an interview Thursday, without disclosing specific countries or a time frame. Either way, the company doesn’t envisage overly spending on promotions in new markets to attract customers, he said. 

FTA listed in a $1.6 billion US initial public offering in 2021, before a Chinese regulatory investigation forced its app off mobile stores and disrupted growth. It returned about a year later, focusing on stabilizing and driving a domestic business serving millions of truckers across the world’s second-biggest economy. 

Created in 2017 by a merger of digital freight platforms Yunmanman and Huochebang, FTA has since primarily focused on China, where revenue has grown by double-digits every quarter for the past four years. The country still harbors vast potential for growth, according to Cai, who predicts that the number of FTA’s domestic users could expand as much as fourfold. 

But it’s now also casting overseas. It joins a growing cohort of Chinese companies pushing abroad, from meal delivery leader Meituan to TikTok-owner ByteDance Ltd., seeking to offset economic malaise at home. E-commerce platforms such as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and PDD Holdings Inc.’s Temu have also established businesses beyond the domestic market.

FTA is planning an IPO of its cold-chain freight business — FTA Cold Chain — which is currently valued at about 3 billion yuan , he said. Hong Kong could be a venue for a listing that may happen as soon as 2026.

As for a larger company listing or share sale, FTA will keep a watch on the market and other factors before making a move, though nothing is planned for now, Cai said. 

FTA’s New York-listed shares have risen about 81% in 12 months to give the company a market value of $12.7 billion. Still, the stock slid 7.4% Monday as part of a broader selloff, its worst loss since Oct. 2023. 

Cai said FTA is embracing artificial intelligence, which he expects to boost revenue. The company already has an AI agent or bot that helps shippers communicate with truckers, and feedback on the service is positive, he said. 

FTA last week said its 2024 revenue rose 33% to 11.2 billion yuan, while net income climbed 40%. Cash and equivalents totaled about 29 billion yuan at the end of 2024, which it intends to use for dividends, overseas expansion and investment in autonomous trucking.

It will continue to invest in autonomous trucking startup Plus.ai, Cai said. “We are determined on this path.”

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.