China's troubled ride-hailing giant Didi reports $4.7 billion Q3 loss

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Global on Thursday reported a $4.7 billion loss in the third quarter, as its revenues plummeted because of a regulatory crackdown by Beijing.

The troubles for the firm -- once called China's Uber -- began after it listed in New York in June, seemingly against the wishes of Beijing.

China then shocked investors by launching cybersecurity investigations into the company.


Didi was removed from app stores, and its stock has since fallen almost two-thirds in value. The firm announced this month it would delist from the New York Stock Exchange and prepare to shift to Hong Kong.

It reported a third-quarter loss of $4.7 billion, the bulk of the company's losses for the year to date, in a regulatory filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday.

It recorded an operating loss of $6.3 billion for the first nine months of the year.

Total revenues slipped 11 percent in the last quarter, after China removed Didi from domestic app stores in July, preventing new users from signing up.

China recently proposed a new law under which companies seeking foreign IPOs would need to register with the securities regulator. A listing will be blocked if it is considered a threat to national security.

Some of China's biggest firms have listed in the United States in search of more developed markets and fresh lines of cash from a massive investor base, but enthusiasm has wavered as tensions have soared between Washington and Beijing.

Instead, Beijing has encouraged companies to list on domestic exchanges to protect information and prevent data from heading overseas, and to develop China's capital markets.

Beijing's regulatory crackdown has expanded during the last year to curb runaway growth in China's powerful tech and internet sectors, and to reign in the influence of big businesses.