AsianFin — CATL has taken a significant step toward listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, marking a pivotal move in its global strategy.

In a filing on Monday, the Chinese battery giant updated its IPO prospectus, setting a maximum price of HK$263 (USD 33.66) per H-share. The offering includes 118 million shares and aims to raise between USD 4 billion and USD 5 billion.

At first glance, CATL appears financially strong, with 260 billion yuan (USD 35.9 billion) in cash and daily profits of 140 million yuan (USD 19.3 million). But its prospectus tells a different story: its foreign currency reserves of €3.8 billion (USD 4.1 billion) fall far short of the €10 billion (USD 10.8 billion) required for its Hungary gigafactory project alone.

CATL's Hong Kong IPO is not merely about replenishing capital. It's a calculated move to raise euros and dollars directly—fuels it needs to scale its European operations. The offering comes as part of a broader strategy to convert capital into market access, bypass trade barriers, and lock in cornerstone investors like Sinopec and Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund. These moves knit oil capital into the lithium battery value chain, allowing CATL to reshape its global valuation through international markets.

As trade restrictions tighten across the U.S. and EU, and as global technology rivalries deepen, CATL's ambitions stretch beyond scale. It's positioning the Hong Kong listing as a geopolitical springboard to influence the rules of global energy distribution.

CATL dominates the global EV battery market, holding a commanding 38.3% share as of Q1 2025, according to SNE Research—more than the combined total of the next five players.

Though the company saw its 2024 revenue dip 9.7% to RMB 362 billion (USD 50 billion) amid industry-wide price wars, net profit surged 15% to RMB 50.75 billion (USD 7 billion). In Q1 2025, that momentum accelerated, with net profit jumping 32.85% and gross margins hitting 24.4%.

CATL's energy storage business is emerging as a powerful second engine. In 2024, it generated RMB 57.3 billion (USD 7.9 billion) in revenue, up 34.3% year-on-year, overtaking the EV battery segment in profitability. Energy storage gross margins reached 26.84%, beating EV batteries for the first time. Overseas margins were even higher at 29.5%, underlining CATL's global pricing power.

International revenues now account for over 30% of CATL's total, and the company is aggressively building out capacity across 13 global bases in countries including Germany and Hungary. But local production mandates—driven by the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act and the EU's Battery Regulation—are forcing CATL to invest heavily overseas just to stay in the game.

In 2024 alone, the company's disclosed investment needs in Europe exceeded €10 billion (USD 10.8 billion). Yet as of mid-2024, its foreign currency reserves stood at just €3.86 billion (USD 4.17 billion) and $6.74 billion—barely enough to cover existing commitments. The Hong Kong listing is CATL's fast lane to FX.