Shares of Chinese ride-hailing firm DiDi fell Monday (April 18) after the company said it would hold a meeting next month to vote on delisting its shares from the New York Stock Exchange.
As Bloomberg reported, DiDi’s American depositary receipts tumbled as much as 23% to $1.90 following its announcement of the vote, scheduled for May 23.
DiDi said that it will keep looking for listing options on other internationally-recognized exchanges, although it won’t do so until after the American delisting concludes.
“Although investors were well aware that DiDi Global intended to delist, the manner of delisting has taken investors aback,” Gary Dugan, CEO of the Global CIO Office, told Bloomberg.
Bloomberg noted that the lack of an immediate relisting plan meant another blow for DiDi shareholders who had hoped to convert their American depositary receipts to Hong Kong shares before DiDi’s NYSE withdrawal. It also made investors nervous about the company’s next step, given that there are still concerns about more regulatory penalties.
“The risk that the stock will be delisted for an extended period of time before being listing again is very negative,” said Jason Hsu, chief investment officer of Rayliant Global Advisors Ltd. “The assumed liquidity premium is clearly being reflected in the price now.”
See also: China Scrutiny Casts Pall Over DiDi IPO
Meanwhile, DiDi reported that its fourth-quarter net loss widened by 95% over the previous year to 383 million yuan ($60 million) on a 13% drop in revenue to 40.78 billion yuan ($6.3 billion).
The report noted that DiDi’s stock has fallen more than 86% since it went public, wiping out $58 billion in market value. The company has been targeted by the Chinese government’s crackdown on tech firms, and regulators began a cybersecurity investigation days after DiDi’s initial public offering (IPO).
Earlier this year, DiDi co-founder Bob Zhang Bo, who is also the firm’s chief technology officer, stepped down amid the investigation and delisting. He’d held the position since January 2019.
Read more: DiDi Co-Founder Steps Down As Company Chairman Amid Delisting
The company had previously said it would list on the Hong Kong exchange. However, DiDi suspended preparations for that listing in March after the Cybersecurity Administration of China told company officials that their proposals to prevent security and data leaks did not meet government requirements.
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