Breaking! Tier-1 Automotive Lighting Supplier Makes "Major" Acquisition
Source: 中国之光网|| Views: 2964
On July 29, the US-listed LiDAR company announced that it had signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by Koito, a leading automotive lighting supplier and shareholder, aiming to achieve synergy between traditional automotive lighting and sensor technology.
Under the agreement, Koito will acquire all outstanding shares of the company in cash at a price of $3.17 per share. Upon completion of the transaction, Cepton will operate as an indirect subsidiary of Koito in the United States. The transaction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2025.
Data shows that the acquirer is the internationally renowned automotive lighting giant KOITO, which was founded in 1915 and has a history of over a century. It is a tier-1 automotive lighting supplier headquartered in Japan, with its group owning 31 companies in 13 countries worldwide. Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Toyota, Nissan, and others are its customers. At the same time, KOITO is also a long-term partner and investor in the acquired company, Cepton. Cepton is a Silicon Valley innovator providing LiDAR-based solutions for automotive (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems/assisted driving), smart cities, smart spaces, and smart industrial applications. Founded in 2016 and led by industry veterans with decades of collective experience in advanced LiDAR and imaging technologies, the company went public via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company a few years ago, listing on Nasdaq with an enterprise valuation of $1.5 billion at the time. The proposed transaction will complement Koito's existing sensor technology roadmap while providing Cepton with the financial stability and scalability critical to the commercialization of its LiDAR technology. Michiaki Kato, President and COO of Koito, stated: "Koito has always contributed to a safe and reliable mobile society through 'lighting' in the field of automotive lighting equipment and other products. By adding LiDAR, a sensor that uses 'light', to our product lineup, we will contribute to the safety and security of the next-generation mobile society characterized by the spread of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving, and achieve sustainable corporate growth by providing higher value-added products through the synergy between automotive lighting equipment and sensor technology." Mitch Hourtienne, Chief Commercial Officer of Cepton, added: "In addition to broadening the business platform for both Koito and Cepton, we hope that our collaboration will have a positive impact on the entire automotive LiDAR ecosystem, driving the establishment of industry standards and accelerating large-scale adoption. We are ready to better support our automotive OEM customers in safely deploying LiDAR-enhanced assisted and autonomous driving platforms through a simplified and stable supply chain, making safe autonomous driving truly applicable to every consumer vehicle." Due to the background of the automotive industry, with the development of ADAS and autonomous driving systems and the increasing demand for peripheral monitoring using various sensors, the advantages of LiDAR, such as high precision, strong anti-interference capability, and true 3D perception, will see wider application as core sensors in the future market. Based on this, the two parties have been cooperating since 2017 to provide industrialized high-performance LiDAR solutions for mass-market automotive lighting, smart infrastructure, and industrial applications. They have won multiple major orders from leading automakers, including General Motors' Ultra Cruise. In July 2018, Cepton and Koito announced a collaboration to develop embedded LiDAR solutions for automotive lighting systems. It is reported that as early as December 22, 2023, KOITO issued an announcement stating that it would enter into negotiations with Cepton regarding the acquisition of its shares to make it a subsidiary. The announcement indicated KOITO's intention to acquire 100% of Cepton's issued shares (those not already held by Koito or certain other potential rollover participants). Currently, both parties have signed a merger agreement, but this transaction still requires approval from Cepton's shareholders, regulatory authorities, and satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. This transaction will be carried out through a reverse triangular merger. Cepton will merge into a wholly-owned subsidiary of an intermediate holding company established by KOITO in the United States, becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of the intermediate holding company, while continuing to maintain its original business and project operations. It is expected that KOITO will hold approximately 94.1% of Cepton's shares through the intermediate holding company. Mr. Jun Pei, CEO and major shareholder of Cepton, along with several other existing shareholders, will make in-kind contributions of a portion of their respective Cepton common shares to the intermediate holding company and receive partial ownership interests in the intermediate holding company.
