ELECTRIC vehicle (EV) manufacturer Byton is seeking to raise at least US$500 million to finance growth, valuing the nearly 3-year-old company at more than US$4 billion, two sources familiar with the matter said.

The latest round of fundraising comes as the government promotes new energy vehicles (NEVs), a category comprising battery-powered and plug-in battery-petrol hybrid cars, to help reduce air pollution and support high technology development.

Byton is keen to primarily attract foreign investors in its latest fundraising and the proceeds will be mainly used to finance the mass production of its first premium electric SUV vehicle — Byton M-Byte and research and development, one of the sources said.

Byton’s chief executive and co-founder Carsten Breitfeld told Germany’s Automobilwoche in October last year that the firm may launch an initial public offering to fund expansion and would seek another round of fundraising from private investors prior to the IPO.

Already backed by China’s retail giant Suning and Hong Kong-based property developer and health-care services provider Fullshare Holdings, Byton earlier last year lured new investors including State-owned carmaker FAW Group and battery supplier Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. in its US$500 million Series B round of funding.

The company is working on its Series C round of fundraising, a Byton spokeswoman said, but declined to provide further details.

The company, which runs offices in China, the United States and Germany, is one of several largely Chinese-funded EV startups betting on the benefits of local production to compete with Tesla and other auto giants. Its local rivals include NASDAQ-listed NIO Inc. and Xpeng Motors, backed by Alibaba Group.(SD-Agencies)