Jidu Auto-Related Company Enters Bankruptcy Proceedings
On April 29th, information disclosed by Tianyancha revealed that Shanghai Jidu Automotive Co., Ltd., a company associated with Jidu Auto, has added a bankruptcy case. Both the applicant and the respondent are Shanghai Jidu Automotive Co., Ltd., and the handling court is the Third Intermediate People's Court of Shanghai. This means that the new EV manufacturer, once considered a representative of the collaboration between Geely and Baidu, has ultimately entered bankruptcy liquidation after experiencing a series of setbacks including a financial crisis, pre-restructuring, and the emergence of potential acquirers.
Looking back, the previous bankruptcy review case of Shanghai Jidu Automotive Co., Ltd. was disclosed on November 24, 2024. At that time, this action was not a bankruptcy reorganization in the eyes of the public, but a pre-restructuring initiated by Jidu Auto, aiming to introduce new investors and seek a lifeline.
During the pre-restructuring process, positive signals were once reported. On December 22, 2024, multiple media outlets, citing a PR Newswire report, stated that Robo.ai, a technology company from Dubai, UAE, had registered to participate in the selection of strategic investors for the pre-restructuring of Shanghai Jidu Automotive Co., Ltd. This news once brought a potential "acquirer" to the struggling Jidu Auto and marked a key advancement in its pre-restructuring process. However, since then, there has been no further news in the market, and the pre-restructuring ultimately failed to reverse the situation.
The crisis at Jidu Auto erupted on the evening of December 11, 2024. At that time, the company suddenly experienced a financial crisis, almost paralyzing itself in a short period of time, causing shockwaves throughout the industry. Subsequently, the two major shareholders, Geely and Baidu, urgently held a closed-door meeting. After multiple rounds of communication, they finally came up with a follow-up plan including employee severance compensation. The company also entered a new stage of after-sales maintenance and service in January 2025, but it still failed to save the overall business decline.
From a high-profile debut to entering bankruptcy proceedings, the fall of Jidu Auto once again reflects the brutal reshuffle in the new EV manufacturing sector. With the court formally accepting the bankruptcy case this time, the fate of Shanghai Jidu Automotive Co., Ltd. has reached its final conclusion.