48 Milliarden Yuan: Ein Vater-Tochter-Team aus Hunan steht vor der Börsengängefeier.

An IPO sensation is coming from Suzhou.

According to investment industry sources, recently, the application of Suzhou Inovance United Power System Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "United Power") for the initial public offering of stocks and listing on the Growth Enterprise Market has been registered by the China Securities Regulatory Commission. The company plans to raise 4.857 billion yuan, and based on this calculation, the company's maximum valuation reaches 48.5 billion yuan.

United Power has an impressive background. It was spun off from Inovance Technology in 2021, and stands behind it are the father - daughter duo of Zhu Xingming and Zhu Hanyue. Inovance Technology under Zhu Xingming's leadership has already been listed, with a latest market value of over 170 billion yuan. Currently, United Power has passed two rounds of listing inquiries and is on the verge of ringing the bell.

This is just a microcosm. It seems that the "father - daughter business partnership" is in vogue this year. Zhongce Rubber, Lexin Outdoor, Xingbang Interactive Entertainment... The "father - daughter entrepreneurial teams" have successively stepped onto the IPO ringing - the - bell stage, leaving a deep impression.

The Richest Man in Yueyang, Hunan: A Hunan Father - Daughter Duo Aims for IPO

The story of United Power begins with a Hunan business tycoon.

Born in Yueyang, Hunan in 1967, Zhu Xingming studied at Northeast Heavy Machinery Institute (now Yanshan University) in his early years. Later, he was recommended to pursue a postgraduate degree at the same school with the top academic performance in his major. After graduation, he was assigned to work at a small motor factory in Shenzhen.

(Photo from the official website of Inovance Technology)

At that time, Huawei began to layout in the field of motor control. Zhu Xingming seized the opportunity to join Huawei Electric and quickly grew into a senior engineer. In 2001, the Anshang Electric where Zhu Xingming worked was acquired by the American Emerson Group for $750 million, becoming the largest domestic merger and acquisition case at that time.

Siemens, ABB, Mitsubishi... At that time, a group of foreign brands monopolized the inverter market. Sensing the opportunity of domestic substitution, in 2003, Zhu Xingming founded Inovance Technology together with 18 former colleagues.

The following story is well - known: Starting from a general - purpose elevator motor inverter, Inovance gradually rose to become a leader in automatic control technology. In 2010, the company successfully listed on the Growth Enterprise Market of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, with a latest market value of over 170 billion yuan.

United Power was once a department of Inovance Technology. As early as 2009, when the electric vehicle industry was still in its infancy, Inovance Technology established a new - energy business department, which was later independent, and United Power was thus born. In 2021, Inovance Technology transferred all the assets related to the new - energy vehicle business to United Power, achieving complete independence in accounts and business, and finally decided to spin off and list.

The underlying logic is easy to understand. As the "three major components" of electric vehicles, "electric control, motor, and battery" are equivalent to the core components such as the engine and gearbox in traditional fuel vehicles, which naturally fit in with Inovance Technology's accumulation in electric control.

After that, United Power initiated a share - reform and introduced Suzhou Lianyi Chuang Investment Management Partnership (Limited Partnership) and Suzhou Lianfeng Investment Management Partnership (Limited Partnership) through two rounds of capital increase. After the capital increase was completed, the shareholding ratios of Lianyi Chuang Investment, Lianfeng Investment, and Inovance Technology in United Power were 3.84%, 1.65%, and 94.5% respectively.

In 2021, Zhu Xingming signed a "Gift Agreement" with his daughter, Ms. Zhu Hanyue, and gratuitously gifted all the property rights and interests of 20,602,113 shares of Inovance Technology (approximately 0.41% of the shares) directly held by him and 21.7029% of the equity of Huichuan Investment to Zhu Hanyue. The two are persons acting in concert. Before the IPO, Zhu Xingming controlled a total of 20.0094% of the voting rights of the company's shares and indirectly controlled 94.51% of the shares of United Power, making him the actual controller of the enterprise.

After more than twenty years of entrepreneurship, Zhu Xingming has firmly ranked first in Yueyang, Hunan on the "Hurun Global Rich List". Now, they are about to welcome a super IPO.

A "Good Brother" of Li Auto: Rising in Suzhou

What supports United Power's IPO?

The prospectus shows that United Power provides power system solutions for more than 40 downstream vehicle manufacturers and more than 170 vehicle models. In 2024, the shipment volume of power system products exceeded 4.5 million units. On this list, there are not only new car - making forces such as Li Auto and Xiaomi, but also national automobile brands such as GAC, Chery, Changan, Geely, and Dongfeng, as well as international mainstream automobile manufacturers such as Volvo, Stellantis, Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, and Jaguar Land Rover.

How about the revenue? The prospectus shows that United Power's revenues from 2022 to 2024 were 5.027 billion yuan, 9.365 billion yuan, and 16.178 billion yuan respectively; the net profits were - 180 million yuan, 186 million yuan, and 936 million yuan respectively. In the first quarter of 2025, the revenue was 3.847 billion yuan, and the net profit reached 328 million yuan.

Among them, the electric drive system products have become the main source of United Power's revenue. From 2022 to 2024, more than 80% of its main business income came from this. At the same time, the selling price of the electric drive system dropped from 5,160.72 yuan per unit in 2022 to 3,764.39 yuan per unit in 2024; correspondingly, the sales volume soared from 898,500 units in 2022 to 3.7116 million units in 2024.

Behind the sharp rise in United Power's performance is its deep - seated cooperation with Li Auto. The prospectus shows that from 2022 to 2024, Li Auto was United Power's first, second, and first largest customer respectively, contributing revenues of 1.458 billion yuan, 1.866 billion yuan, and 5.612 billion yuan respectively.

It is worth noting that the historical case of WM Motor highlights the risk of customer management. From 2021 to 2023, due to the business crisis of WM Motor, United Power accrued a total of 330 million yuan in bad debts, of which 215 million yuan was accrued in 2023, having a greater impact on the current profit.

United Power admitted that if the sales volume of customer vehicle models decreases, it will lead to a decline in the company's product sales volume; if the gross profit margin of customer vehicle products decreases or even there is a loss per vehicle, it will put pressure on the company's sales price and further affect the gross profit margin level; if the customer's capital turnover slows down, it will lead to a longer collection cycle of the company's accounts receivable and a deterioration of the cash - flow situation. The company's operating performance will be adversely affected.

Looking back on the rise of United Power, Suzhou plays an important role that cannot be ignored. In October last year, the project of United Power's headquarters and production base started in Suzhou, with a total investment of 8 billion yuan. At that time, Zhu Xingming said that Suzhou has a solid industrial foundation and a first - class business environment, making it a paradise for innovation and entrepreneurship. "It only took three months from the start to the construction of the new project, and the efficiency far exceeded expectations."

As the location of United Power's headquarters, more than 90 new - energy intelligent vehicle - related enterprises are gathered in Wuzhong District, Suzhou, covering key sub - fields such as the "three - electric" system, automotive electronics, automotive accessories, and intelligent connected vehicles. As of August last year, there were a total of 34 key projects under construction in the new - energy intelligent vehicle industry in Wuzhong District, with a planned total investment of 20.684 billion yuan.

Looking at the whole city of Suzhou, the output value of Suzhou's new - energy and new - energy vehicle industries has exceeded 750 billion yuan, and there are 430 above - designated - size new - energy enterprises. In this process, Suzhou has gathered enterprises in the fields of photovoltaic cells, energy - storage batteries, new - energy vehicles, and intelligent driving systems, such as GCL Group, Canadian Solar, GoodWe, Tianhua New Energy, Starlight Power, ZX Auto Technology, and King Long United Automotive Industry.

In September last year, the "Three - Year Action Plan for the High - Quality Development of Suzhou's New - Energy Industry (2024 - 2026)" was released, aiming to exceed 1 trillion yuan in the output value of Suzhou's new - energy industry by 2026.

This also means that Suzhou's fourth trillion - level industrial cluster is approaching rapidly.

The Collective Appearance of Chinese Female Heirs

The label of the Zhu father - daughter on United Power is particularly prominent. This also shows that more and more "father - daughter entrepreneurial teams" are stepping onto the IPO ringing - the - bell stage.

It is impressive that in June this year, Zhongce Rubber listed on the main board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and its opening market value once approached 50 billion yuan, becoming the largest IPO in Hangzhou so far this year. Derived from the Hangzhou Haichao Rubber Factory established in 1958, Zhongce Rubber is now a leading tire manufacturer in China. Before this IPO, the actual controllers of the company were the father - daughter duo of Qiu Jianping and Qiu Fei, who jointly controlled 46.95% of the shares.

There is also Xingbang Interactive Entertainment from Chengdu. This game company established in 2014 was founded by Guo Zhongjian. His daughter, Guo Xiaolan, joined as the CEO in 2017 and has since incubated several hit games. Not long ago, Xingbang Interactive Entertainment's signature mobile game, "Legend of Immortals in Kyushu", achieved a total turnover of over 10 billion yuan. In March this year, Xingbang Interactive Entertainment officially submitted a prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and the Guo Zhongjian father - daughter duo is about to welcome their first IPO.

A little earlier, the filing application materials for Lexin Outdoor's IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange have also been received by the CSRC. The founder is a 60 - year - old Zhejiang businessman, Yang Baoqing, who started from a small village - run leather workshop and built Taipusen after more than thirty years. Among them, Lexin Outdoor is the fishing equipment business of the group. The prospectus shows that LEI YANG, the executive director and general manager of the company, is Yang Baoqing's daughter. She was born in 1995, went overseas to study in her early years, and returned to the family business after graduation. She joined Lexin Outdoor in July 2022.

Such cases are numerous. Quietly, a group of female successors are emerging in the Chinese business world.

For example, Liu Shuqi took over as the head of Tongwei Co., Ltd. with a market value of nearly 100 billion yuan; Liu Chang took over New Hope Investment Group from her father and is in charge of the family investment; Chen Shiliang, the founder of Tongkun Group, handed over the reins to his daughter, Chen Lei; Tianqi Lithium elected Jiang Anqi, the daughter of Jiang Weiping, as the new chairperson... They have become a beautiful scenery in the Chinese business community.

Of course, Zong Fuling is better known to the public. In February last year, Zong Qinghou passed away due to illness, and Wahaha entered the "Zong Fuling era" from then on. In her first year of taking over, Wahaha's revenue returned to the range of 70 billion yuan, reaching the same level as ten years ago.

However, recently, Zong Fuling has been involved in an inheritance dispute, which is quite regrettable.

As the saying goes, "It is easier to conquer a kingdom than to defend it." It is an eternal truth in Chinese history that it is more difficult to preserve a business than to start one. Although female successors in the Chinese business world are emerging one after another, the real tests for them are just beginning.

This article is from the WeChat public account "Investment World" (ID: pedaily2012), written by Liu Bo and Yu Mengying, and is reprinted by 36Kr with permission.