UBER-LIKE Chinese startup Full Truck Alliance is preparing for a U.S. initial public offering (IPO) that could raise at least US$1 billion as soon as this year, after eking out a slim 2020 profit thanks to a pandemic-era shipping surge.

The startup backed by Tencent Holdings Ltd. is working with Morgan Stanley and China International Capital Corp. on its American debut, people familiar with the matter said.

The talks are preliminary and details could still change but the company aims to raise US$1 billion to US$2 billion, they said.

China’s economy roared back to pre-pandemic growth rates in the fourth quarter after its industrial engines fired up to meet surging demand for exports. That boom is straining a domestic logistics network already taxed by a COVID-19 resurgence in e-commerce.

That helped the firm, known also as Manbang, post a profit of about 135 million yuan (US$21 million) last year, reversing a 735-million-yuan loss in 2019, the people said.

It expanded sales 13 percent to 2.5 billion yuan. Those figures are preliminary and haven’t been audited and could be subject to change after adjustment, they said.

“We do not have concrete IPO plans at the moment, and the information you cite about our company is inaccurate, incomplete and misleading,” the company said.

Manbang, backed by SoftBank Group Corp., faces stiffening competition as smaller rivals try to win a slice of an evolving market. Tech giants from car-hailing leader Didi Chuxing to Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. are now introducing technology to try and streamline the shipping process, connecting merchants with truckers and delivery firms.

Formed by a merger between China’s two largest truck-sharing platforms — Huochebang and Yunmanman — Manbang has attracted a big roster of backers. (SD-Agencies)