Xiaomi, Chinese smartphone and smart hardware electronics company hopes to raise USD 6.12 billion in the initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong next month, offering about 2.18 billion shares priced at between 17 and 22 HK dollars each.

Lei Jun, executive director, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Xiaomi said that in 2017, only seven years after its founding, the company’s annual revenue exceeded 100 billion yuan (USD 15.38 billion).

“Xiaomi has huge potential for growth as a very rare company that can handle hardware, e-commerce and internet services”, Lei said. “Up to date, Xiaomi has maintained only a very small presence in the European market, so our key markets for future expansion are Spain and France.”

Xiaomi first launched operations in Spain late last year, while in France it opened a Mi store and also offers products online. Xiaomi sees these two markets as ideal entrance points to European market.

With headquarters in Beijing, Xiaomi released its first smartphone in August 2011 and has rapidly gained market share in China to become China's largest smartphone company in 2014. As of 2018, Xiaomi is the world's 4th largest smartphone manufacturer, after Apple, Samsung and Huawei. Xiaomi makes and invests in smartphones, mobile apps, laptops, and related consumer electronics.

Xiaomi has 15,000 employees in China, India, Malaysia, Singapore and is expanding to other countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines, and South Africa. Lei Jun, the founder and CEO, has an estimated net worth of USD 6.8 billion. He is China's 24th richest person in 2017. Xiaomi is currently estimated at USD 46 billion.