Geely reportedly in final stages of acquiring smartphone maker Meizu

Beijing (Gasgoo)- Geely Holding has reportedly acquired China’s smartphone company Meizu and entered the final stages of the transactions, several local media outlets reported on May 6th.

Photo credit: Geely

By press time, neither Meizu nor Geely responded to the issue. 

As Gasgoo previously reported, rumors about the acquisition first appeared in January this year. At the time, Geely responded to the media that they “had no comments on the hearsays.” The handphone R&D business was developing orderly, and they hoped to build an open and integrated ecosystem. 

On the other hand, Meizu thanked local media outlets for their concerns with the company. 

In addition, Hubei Xingji Shidai Technology Co., Ltd., the Geely-affiliated smartphone company has obtained two smartphone-related patent authorizations, according to the corporate database, Qichacha.

Photo credit: Qichacha

These patent pictures showed the approximate appearance of Geely’s smartphones. This was also the first piece of information disclosed to the public since Li Shufu, founder and chairman of Geely, announced his foray into the mobile phone business. 

Aside from product development, Xingji Shidai has also been raising capital. In December 2021, the company completed a strategic round of investment, participated by Geely Group (Ningbo), ECARX-backed Ningbo Boma, and Wuhan Economic Development Investment. Later on, in January, Wuhan  Jingkai Xingji Investment Fund Partnership was added as one of the company’s shareholders, which brought up its registered capital by 10% to RMB715 million ($107 million).