Volant raised nearly 1 billion yuan and intensifies expansion and IPO plans
Chinese vertical takeoff and landing electric aircraft startup Shanghai Volant Aerotech Co., Ltd. has raised nearly 1 billion yuan ($147 million) in a new round of financing, preparing for an IPO (Initial Public Offering) in Hong Kong.
The intense fundraising campaign highlights a widespread rush among Chinese flying car developers to secure capital for costly airworthiness certifications and mass production, hoping to dominate a nascent sector that has already suffered high-profile casualties in the West.
The Series C+ financing round, announced on Wednesday (May 27, 2026), was led by a technology-focused investment fund, supported by China Life Insurance Co. Ltd., with participation from Nio Capital and Cornerstone Capital. It comes just 1 month after Volant secured US$300 million in a Series C round, bringing the total capital raised by the company to almost 5 billion yuan.
EM HONG KONG IPO
The recent capital-intensive infusion is mainly driven by Volant’s preparations for its IPO in Hong Kong and relatively smooth progress on airworthiness certification, a person close to the company told the Chinese outlet.
Founded by Dong Ming, an aviation veteran who previously worked on Chinese-made commercial jets, Volant said it plans to use the funds to advance regulatory approval of its VE25-100 aircraft.
Airworthiness certification, a technical safety assessment carried out by civil aviation authorities, is a prerequisite for commercial operation. In September 2023, the East China Regional Administration of the Civil Aviation Administration of China accepted Volant’s type certificate application for the VE25-100, beginning the aircraft’s certification process. The model remains under analysis.
Volant’s rapid capital accumulation reflects a widespread industry rush toward public markets, driven by Beijing’s policy to develop a “low altitude economy”. XPeng AeroHT, the eVTOL affiliate of Chinese automaker XPeng Inc., reportedly tapped banks for an IPO in Hong Kong earlier this year and raised nearly $200 million in March to finance the 2026 delivery of its modular flying car.
Similarly, Geely Holding Group-backed Aerofugia began the regulatory mentoring process for an IPO on Shanghai’s STAR market in April, following its own 1 billion yuan financing round in February.
Despite the influx of domestic capital, the sector faces an uphill road to profitability. Chinese startups are navigating the same capital-cost research and regulatory bottlenecks that plagued a previous wave of publicly traded Western eVTOL companies, a reality underscored by the recent bankruptcy of German pioneer Lilium.
Industry observers note that while an IPO provides a crucial lifeline, a company’s ability to successfully market its aircraft after certification will ultimately determine its survival.
This text was originally published by Agência Caixin, on May 28, 2026, at 4:22 pm (Brasília time). The content is free for republication, the source is cited, and has been adapted to the standard of Poder360.
