WM Motor sells its assets at rock-bottom prices. Will its plan to produce 100,000 vehicles in mass production change again?
Last year, WM Motor welcomed its "rescuer". Recently, it has started a major asset fire - sale mode.
According to the information on the Taobao Ali Auction platform, the external accounts receivable of two WM - affiliated companies, WM Procurement and WM Sales, with book values of 128 million yuan and 140 million yuan respectively, are both being auctioned externally with a starting bid of 100 yuan.
However, the administrators of the aforementioned two auctions both stated that they do not provide guarantees or commitments regarding the authenticity or recoverability of the external claims.
In addition, the 40% equity of Hengjiawei held by WM Procurement is also being auctioned with a starting bid of 100 yuan.
In September last year, a "White Paper to Suppliers" issued by WM Motor (which has been deleted from the official account) gave WM Motor, which had been shut down for more than two years and had applied for bankruptcy reorganization, a glimmer of hope for "resurrection".
In November of the same year, WM Motor previewed that "good things are coming soon, please stay tuned". That month, WM Motor first announced the relaunch of the Xiaowei Suihang App, and then registered and established a new sales company, showing a strong momentum to return to the red - ocean of the new energy vehicle market.
However, WM Motor then fell into silence again. Whether WM Motor can achieve its first - stage goal of mass - producing 100,000 vehicles in 2026, which it had previously vowed to achieve, has once again become uncertain.
Two accounts receivable worth over 100 million yuan, all starting at 100 yuan for auction
According to the information on the Taobao Ali Auction platform, the administrator of WM New Energy Vehicle Procurement (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (referred to as WM Procurement) auctioned WM Procurement's external accounts receivable on April 27.
Leida Finance learned that the auction item is 24 external accounts receivable reflected in the "Statement of External Claims", with a total amount of 128 million yuan. They are packaged and auctioned with a starting bid of 100 yuan.
The "Statement of External Claims" shows that the recipients of the accounts receivable include several leading enterprises in the automotive parts industry, and the amounts involved with just the top two, Bosch Automotive and Xiboke, exceed 100 million yuan.
The non - litigation collection records show that some debtors have signed for the collection notices, some have replied denying the debts, and some have returned the notices.
It is worth noting that the administrator of WM Procurement has not taken over any written contracts signed with the debtors. All transactions between the two parties were completed through WM's internal system, which stopped operating at the end of 2022 and cannot be restored. Currently, only electronic financial accounts are available for reference.
Simultaneously with the aforementioned 128 - million - yuan external accounts receivable, the 40% equity of Guangzhou Hengjiawei Digital Technology Co., Ltd. (referred to as Hengjiawei) held by WM Procurement is also being auctioned, with a starting bid of 100 yuan.
According to Tianyancha, Hengjiawei was established in August 2022, with a registered capital of 10 million yuan. In terms of equity, the other 60% of Hengjiawei's shares are held by Guangzhou Henghe E - commerce Technology Co., Ltd.
The actual controller of Guangzhou Henghe, Zhang Dan, has a background in R&F. He serves as a director of Guangdong Xintianhong Property Development Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of R&F Group.
It is worth noting that in August 2024, due to the reason of "being unable to be contacted through the registered address or business premises", Hengjiawei was included in the list of abnormal business operations by the Market Supervision and Administration Bureau of Nansha District, Guangzhou.
At 10 a.m. on May 5, an external accounts receivable under the name of WM New Energy Vehicle Sales (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (referred to as WM Sales) will also be auctioned, involving a total amount of approximately 140 million yuan, with a starting bid of 100 yuan.
The attachment "Statement of External Claims" of this auction shows that WM Sales has as many as 123 external accounts receivable, and most of the debtors are sales companies across the country.
Similar to the accounts receivable of WM Procurement being auctioned, the administrator does not provide guarantees or commitments regarding the authenticity or recoverability of the external claims.
The administrator is also unable to provide relevant supporting documents. The external claims may be wholly or partially invalid, non - existent, unrecoverable, or result in losses, and there are defects in authenticity.
The auction information shows that the above three auctions are all the fifth - round auctions.
As of press time, the first auction was won by a buyer with the bidder number Y1059 at a price of 93,500 yuan; the second auction was won by a buyer with the bidder number S7097 at a price of 5,000 yuan; and more than 50 people have signed up for the third auction.
The "star manager" failed miserably in car - making, losing 1.74 billion yuan in three years
The story of WM Motor begins with "professional manager" Shen Hui, who has worked in several well - known enterprises.
In 1987, Shen Hui was admitted to South China University of Technology. Four years later, with outstanding grades, he successfully applied for a full scholarship from the University of California, Los Angeles, and then went to the United States to pursue a master's degree in structural engineering.
After graduating with a master's degree, Shen Hui, who was originally supposed to pursue a Ph.D., without hesitation gave up the opportunity to pursue a doctorate and instead went to work at KLT Energy Company, a subsidiary of Kansas Power & Light Group, as a project manager.
Later, Shen Hui worked in several multinational enterprises. At the age of 30, he was already the general manager of a joint - venture company of automotive parts manufacturer BorgWarner Group.
After that, Shen Hui successively became the vice - president of Fiat in China, the global senior vice - president and chairman of the China region of Volvo, and the vice - president of Geely Group.
During his tenure at Geely, Shen Hui led and participated in the acquisition of Volvo, which became the highlight of his career as a professional manager.
After leaving Geely, Shen Hui accepted the invitation of his friend Ying Yilun and jointly founded Botai Auto. When joining Botai Auto, Shen Hui once told the media, "I hope to build Botai Group into a benchmark enterprise in the fields of Internet of Vehicles and intelligent vehicles."
In just a few months, Shen Hui recruited talents from all over the place and formed a team of more than 30 people. However, his first entrepreneurial attempt ended in less than a year, and he finally chose to leave due to differences in ideas.
In 2015, Shen Hui acquired an electric vehicle manufacturing enterprise in Germany and named the company "Weltmeister" (meaning "world champion"), and WM Motor was born.
Relying on the connections he had accumulated through years of experience in the industry, Shen Hui quickly attracted investors. Subsequently, a series of operations such as land acquisition, factory construction, and mass production were carried out smoothly.
Shen Hui once said bluntly, "I am the one who can mobilize international resources the most. No one else can pick up the phone and talk directly to the CEO and CFO of General Motors like I can."
Leida Finance learned from WM's official website that from 2015 to 2017, WM successively completed Series A to Series C financing, with a cumulative financing of more than 13 billion yuan, and successfully introduced strategic investors such as Baidu, Sequoia China, and Tencent.
In 2016, WM started the construction of two vehicle manufacturing plants in Wenzhou, Zhejiang, and Huanggang, Hubei, with a planned annual production capacity of 250,000 vehicles, following a heavy - asset model.
In April 2018, three years after the company was founded, WM's first mass - produced vehicle, the WM EX5, was launched. That year, with a delivery volume of 3,844 vehicles, it ranked second among new - force automakers. The following year, the EX5 became the best - selling single - model of the year.
In 2020, WM completed a Series D financing of 10 billion yuan, setting a single - round financing record for new - force car - makers at that time.
Although WM has obtained multiple rounds of financing, the capital - intensive nature of car - making and the company's heavy - asset model have always put WM under financial pressure.
According to WM's previously submitted prospectus, from 2019 to 2021, the company's cumulative losses exceeded 1.74 billion yuan in three years.
By the end of 2021, WM's net assets were - 2.0536 billion yuan, and it had fallen into insolvency.
In 2021, WM delivered more than 44,000 vehicles throughout the year, but its ranking dropped to fifth. Its R & D investment was far lower than that of "NIO, XPeng, and Li Auto", and the hollowing - out of technology became apparent.
In order to seek financial support, WM Motor has launched several attempts to go public in the capital market. It has targeted both the A - share and Hong Kong - stock markets and has also tried to list on the US stock market through a reverse merger with Kaixin Auto, but all attempts have failed.
WM Motor's repeated failures in going public have not only blocked its most important "blood - transfusion" channel but also severely damaged market confidence, making subsequent financing even more difficult.
Facing numerous challenges, WM's situation has become increasingly difficult. Since the second half of 2022, the company has successively faced difficulties such as salary cuts, lay - offs, factory shutdowns, and overdue payments to suppliers.
In September 2023, Shen Hui posted on a social platform, "I'm on a business trip to Munich this week, and then to New York." However, after arriving in the United States, Shen Hui "disappeared" from the public eye.
One month later, the National Enterprise Bankruptcy Reorganization Case Information Network showed that WM Motor applied for bankruptcy reorganization, and the applicant was WM Motor itself.
At the same time, WM Motor also issued a notice through its official Weibo, stating that the Shanghai Third Intermediate People's Court accepted WM Motor's pre - reorganization application on October 7, 2023.
Waiting for the "white knight" and planning a "three - step" blueprint
In 2025, WM finally waited for its "white knight". The former Shenzhen Xiangfei Auto Sales Co., Ltd. (referred to as Xiangfei Auto) took over the company as the reorganization investor.
In September of that year, WM issued a "White Paper to Suppliers". Xiangfei Auto initially planned to invest 1 billion yuan for equipment upgrading, supply - chain restoration, and product development.
Meanwhile, WM revealed its subsequent "three - step" business development plan in the "White Paper to Suppliers".
Specifically, the first stage is the revival stage from 2025 to 2026: Resume production of the EX5/E.5 models in September, ensure an annual production and sales volume of 10,000 units, and strive to achieve a production and sales volume of 20,000 units; at the same time, break into the overseas market, set up a KD factory in Thailand, and explore the Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern markets. Mass - produce 100,000 vehicles in 2026.
The second stage is the development stage from 2027 to 2028: The annual sales volume will jump from 250,000 to 400,000 units; mass - produce high - level assisted - driving models, empower the entire R & D, production, and marketing chain with AI, and start preparations for an IPO.
The third stage is the leap - forward stage from 2029 to 2030: Aim to produce 1 million vehicles and achieve a revenue of 120 billion yuan in 2030.
Two months later, WM Motor posted, "Good things are coming soon, please stay tuned", along with the text and picture "Constantly thinking about something will surely bring a response".
According to LanJing News, at that time, a relevant insider said that WM Motor might hold a press conference about a new vehicle at the end of the month, and stated that the aforementioned "good things" involved multiple aspects, including products, sales networks, and suppliers, "basically everything".
However, the rumored press conference did not take place as scheduled. On November 5 last year, WM Motor officially announced the relaunch of the Xiaowei Suihang App, and functions such as Bluetooth vehicle control, remote vehicle control, and Bluetooth keys of the mobile app were restored.
On November 27 of the same year, WM registered and established a new sales company, Zhimaxing (Wenzhou) New Energy Vehicle Sales Co., Ltd. Subsequently, the company fell into silence again, and few news items were reported.
As for WM's "savior", Xiangfei Auto, since Huang Jing, its former actual controller, has a 46% ultimate beneficial share in Kunshan Baoneng Auto Co., Ltd., some people believe that a "Baoneng - affiliated" company may be behind WM's "resurrection".
However, according to Tianyancha, in February this year, all the original shareholders of Xiangfei Auto left, and Hong Kong WM Motor Co., Ltd. became the sole shareholder; Xiangfei Auto was also renamed Shenzhen Xiangfei Auto Group Co., Ltd. in April this year.
Will the ill - fated WM Motor be able to achieve its first - stage goal as expected? Leida Finance will continue to follow up.
This article is from the WeChat official account "Leida Finance", author: Ding Yu, editor: Meng Shuai, published by 36Kr with authorization.