China auto sector raises $8.5b as EV defy funding slump start-ups

China's electric vehicle (EV) startups are defying the venture capital (VC) winter.

While the country is leading a global contraction in VC investment, its auto sector has taken the top spot for funding so far this year, with more than 147 deals amounting to US$5.95 billion (S$8.5 billion), according to data from research firm Preqin.

Much of that has been from capital flowing into EVs, with batteries and semiconductors - two other high-growth sectors in the new-energy vehicle chain - in fourth and fifth place.

All three have logged more deals than in 2021, while fund-raising for once-hot industries like Internet businesses, education and real estate has fallen off a cliff.

The biggest deals this year include Changjiang Capital's US$1.57 billion bet on a high-end electric car start-up founded by Renault China chief executive Soh Weiming and a US$1.17 billion Series A round for Sunwoda's EV battery unit, driven by investors including Shenzhen Capital Group and National Green Development Fund Management, according to Preqin.