Bitauto Holdings Limited (NYSE:BITA)

Fourth Quarter 2019 Financial Results

• Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2019 was RMB2.69 billion (US$385.8 million), compared to RMB3.12 billion (US$448.1 million) in the corresponding period in 2018. 
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per ADS in the fourth quarter of 2019 amounted to RMB8.07 (US$1.16) and RMB8.07 (US$1.16), respectively.

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "The automobile industry in China remained challenging in the fourth quarter of 2019, as new passenger vehicle sales continued to decline year-over-year. Despite the substantial industry headwinds, Bitauto's total revenue reached RMB2.69 billion in the fourth quarter of 2019, exceeding the higher end of our guidance of RMB2.55 billion."

"We were pleased to make further progress in increasing our mobile traffic, as well as improving the quantity and quality of our sales leads. According to QuestMobile, in January 2020 daily active users (DAU) of the Bitauto media app increased by 256%, compared to October 2018 when we rolled out the upgraded version. Moreover, the combined DAU of both the Bitauto media app and our Auto Pricing app increased by approximately 40% year-over-year in January 2020. Amid declining new passenger vehicle sales, we grew our number of sales leads by 8.8% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2019, with the proportion of organic sales leads rising to nearly 70%. We have also seen improved quality of sales leads in terms of higher conversion rates as measured by store visits and number of transactions. Backed by these solid operating metrics, Bitauto's revenue from advertising and subscription business reached RMB1.07 billion for the fourth quarter of 2019, exceeding management's expectation."

"We have been achieving very encouraging progress from our ongoing strategic branding campaign which we started in the fourth quarter of 2019. Based on online awareness metrics such as Baidu Index and third party offline consumer surveys, Bitauto has recorded a significant improvement in brand recognition among automobile consumers over a fairly short period of time. We view brand building as a long-term commitment which will allow us to broaden our user base and provide a better value proposition for our automaker and dealer customers."

"In our transaction services business, despite the unfavourable industry environment in the fourth quarter, Yixin further expanded its loan facilitation services, which grew 3% year-over-year and contributed 82% of total financed transactions. For the full year 2019, Yixin maintained steady growth and further solidified its industry-leading position by leveraging its leadership advantages and trackable credibility. Yixin continued to tighten its risk control standards to better adapt to the changing regulatory environment, as many local governments began to implement stricter rules for the collection of delinquent consumer accounts."

"Looking into 2020, we will remain committed to investing resources in key strategic initiatives that strengthen our long-term competitiveness. First, we will continue enhancing our content, products and services to provide better value and experience to automobile consumers and car owners. We will continue to roll out and optimize our AI-based, result-driven marketing solution to more mainstream automakers. We will also increase our R&D investments to improve functionality and user experience of our business to business (B2B) products for our automaker and dealer customers. Second, to further broaden Bitauto's user base and improve our value proposition to our business partners, we will continue working on increasing our mobile traffic, as well as quantity and quality of our sales leads. Third, we will continue investing in our brand building campaign to raise Bitauto's brand recognition among automobile consumers. We are confident that all of these efforts will help form a solid foundation to boost our long-term growth going forward. Lastly, Yixin will proactively adopt a more conservative risk assessment methodology, while partnering with dealers and financial institution partners to identify opportunities within China's automobile market as we adapt to the industry uncertainties we have been facing, as well as the impact from the coronavirus epidemic."

Mr. Ming Xu, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "Bitauto's total revenue and revenue from our advertising and subscription business for the fourth quarter of 2019 were both better than expected, as our efforts to enhance Bitauto's brand and increase traffic as well as the quality and quantity of sales leads continue to pay off. While our strategic investments in branding will weigh on our profitability in the near-term, we are confident that this will significantly strengthen Bitauto's long-term competitiveness and profitability."

First Quarter 2020 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB1.70 billion (US$244.2 million) to RMB1.80 billion (US$258.6 million) in the first quarter of 2020.

This forecast takes into consideration of seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. In particular, as the situation surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak in China and globally continue to evolve, business visibility remains limited. The above reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

BEIJING, Oct. 22, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (BITA), a leading provider of internet content & marketing services, and transaction services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that the special committee of the Company's board of directors (the "Special Committee") has retained Duff & Phelps, LLC and Duff & Phelps Securities, LLC as its independent financial advisor. The Special Committee was formed to consider the preliminary non-binding "going private" proposal set out in a September 12, 2019 letter from Tencent Holdings Limited and Hammer Capital (the "Proposal").

The Board cautions the Company's shareholders and others considering trading in its securities that no decisions have been made with respect to the Company's response to the Proposal. There can be no assurance that any definitive offer will be made, that any agreement will be executed or that this or any other transaction will be approved or consummated. The Company does not undertake any obligation to provide any updates with respect to this or any other transaction, except as required under applicable law.

BEIJING, Sept. 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of internet content & marketing services, and transaction services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that its Board of Directors (the "Board") has formed a special committee consisting of three independent directors, Mr. Erhai Liu, Ms. Annabelle Yu Long and Mr. Jun Hou, to consider the previously announced preliminary non-binding "going private" proposal set out in a September 12, 2019 letter from Tencent Holdings Limited and Hammer Capital. Mr. Liu chairs the special committee. The special committee has retained Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP as its U.S. legal counsel.

The Board cautions the Company's shareholders and others considering trading in its securities that the Board only recently received the non-binding proposal letter and no decisions have been made with respect to the Company's response to the Transaction. There can be no assurance that any definitive offer will be made, that any agreement will be executed or that this or any other transaction will be approved or consummated. The Company does not undertake any obligation to provide any updates with respect to this or any other transaction, except as required under applicable law.

BEIJING, Sept. 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of internet content & marketing services, and transaction services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that its Board of Directors (the "Board") has received a preliminary non-binding proposal letter, dated September 12, 2019, from Tencent Holdings Limited and Hammer Capital (together, the "Buyer Group"), proposing to acquire all of the outstanding ordinary shares of Bitauto not already owned by the Buyer Group or their affiliates for US$16 in cash per American depositary share ("ADS") in a going private transaction (the "Transaction").

A copy of the proposal letter is attached as Annex A to this press release.

The Board will form an independent special committee to consider the Transaction.

The Board cautions the Company's shareholders and others considering trading in its securities that the Board just received the non-binding proposal letter from the Buyer Group and no decisions have been made with respect to the Company's response to the Transaction. There can be no assurance that any definitive offer will be made, that any agreement will be executed or that this or any other transaction will be approved or consummated.  The Company does not undertake any obligation to provide any updates with respect to this or any other transaction, except as required under applicable law.

First Quarter 2019 Financial Results

• Revenue in the first quarter of 2019 was RMB2.73 billion (US$407.5 million), a 26.0% increase from the corresponding period in 2018, exceeding the high-end of Company guidance. 
• Basic and diluted net income per ADS in the first quarter of 2019 was RMB0.43(US$0.06) and RMB0.34 (US$0.05), respectively. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per ADS in the first quarter of 2019 was RMB2.12 (US$0.32) and RMB1.91(US$0.28), respectively.

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "Amidst a challenging auto industry environment, we were pleased to deliver a set of solid results for the first quarter of 2019, with total revenue growing by 26.0% year-over-year to RMB2.73 billion. Our advertising and subscription business continued to see steady growth, with revenue reaching RMB897.0 million, representing a 13.9% year-over year increase. Revenue from our core advertising and subscription business, which excludes contributions from subsidiaries in which we hold controlling interests, grew by 12.6% year-over-year for the first quarter of 2019. Our transaction services business continued to expand rapidly and reached RMB1.65 billion in revenue, representing a 40.7% year-over-year increase."

"During the quarter, we saw substantial increases in traffic, user time spent, and number of sales leads generated. According to Questmobile, in April 2019, daily active users (DAU) on the Bitauto media app increased by 197% since the upgrade which we rolled out in October 2018. Moreover, the combined DAU on both the Bitauto media app and Auto Pricing app rose by approximately 50% over the same period in 2018. Our total number of sales leads grew by approximately 15% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2019, with higher quality attributable to greater contribution from organic leads. As a result of the improving quantity and quality of sales leads, average revenue per user (ARPU) in our subscription business further increased as we continued to migrate members to our premium and recently launched deluxe premium service packages. We also expanded our network of independent dealers to over 26,000 during the first quarter of 2019, of which more than 2,300 were paying customers as of the end of this May."

"In our transaction services business, Yixin continued to grow faster than the industry, strengthening its market leadership, and enhancing its competitive advantages. Yixin facilitated approximately 147,000 financed automobile transactions in the first quarter of 2019, a year-over-year increase of approximately 30%. During the quarter, Yixin's financed new automobile transactions increased by approximately 23% year-over-year, while China's new passenger vehicles sales decreased by 14% year-over-year, according to China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. Yixin's financed used automobile transactions increased by approximately 39% year-over-year during the quarter, while China's used passenger vehicle sales increased by 2% year-over-year, according to China Automobile Dealers Association. Yixin's loan facilitation services contributed 66% of its total financed automobile transactions, with transaction volume up nearly 10 times compared to the same period of last year."

"Looking forward, we will remain dedicated to executing on our core business strategies to build Bitauto into China's top online automobile media and transaction services platform. First, we will continue to improve content and user experience on the upgraded Bitauto media app, which has seen robust improvement in DAU, retention rate, as well as content generation and consumption. This will greatly strengthen our ability to bring higher quality sales leads to our automaker and dealer customers, helping enhance their sales conversion rates, and demonstrating our value proposition amid the current soft market of automobile sales. Second, we will drive incremental revenue growth in our advertising business through data products, which provide automakers with integrated results-driven marketing solutions. Our data products enable automakers to analyse real-time consumer behavior, including browsing, research and purchasing, to further improve conversion rates. Third, we will further develop our subscription business this year, as we enhance ARPU from 4S dealer customers through sales of premium and deluxe premium service packages, and expand our services to cover more independent dealers while gradually increasing monetization among this vast and under-tapped market segment. Fourth, Yixin will remain focused on rapidly expanding its financed automobile transactions, growing its loan facilitation business, and developing its technology capabilities to better understand, connect, and serve consumers, financial institution partners, and automobile dealers. We believe that Yixin is well-positioned to gain market share in the automobile finance industry."

Mr. Ming Xu, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "Despite soft sales in the automobile industry, our results for the first quarter of 2019 maintained a steady growth trajectory, with strong performances from both our advertising and subscription business and transaction services business. We were also able to increase profitability in the first quarter, mainly attributable to improved profitability at Yixin, as well as effective control on sales and marketing expenses. With growing traffic and enhanced user experience, we believe our upgraded Bitauto media app should continue to strengthen Bitauto's value proposition, which we believe will be increasingly recognized by our OEM and dealer customers as they focus on the effectiveness of their advertising spending. We expect the growth of our user base and brand value will further solidify our leading industry position, reduce our customer acquisition costs and enhance our margins. We remain optimistic about Yixin's margin outlook for the full year as it further grows its total financed transaction volume."

Second Quarter 2019 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB2.70 billion (US$402.3 million) to RMB2.80 billion (US$417.2 million) in the second quarter of 2019, representing a 5.3% to 9.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2018.

Bitauto Fourth Quarter 2018 Financial Results

• Bitauto reported revenue of RMB3.12 billion (US$453.7 million) for the fourth quarter of 2018, representing a 25.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2017.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per ADS in the fourth quarter of 2018 was RMB1.58 (US$0.23) and RMB1.45 (US$0.21), respectively. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per ADS in fiscal year 2018 was RMB9.62 (US$1.40) and RMB8.90 (US$1.29), respectively.

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "We were pleased to conclude 2018 with robust growth across all three of our business lines, amid softer passenger vehicle sales in China during the second half of the year. Our full year revenues increased by 31.0% over the previous year to RMB10.58 billion, and revenue in our advertising and subscription business reached RMB4.07 billion, representing 13.5% year-over-year growth. In particular, our core advertising and subscription business, which excludes contributions from subsidiaries in which we hold controlling interests, grew by 17.9% year-over-year for the full year. We also maintained strong growth in our transaction services business, with full year revenues increasing by 49.8% year-over-year to RMB5.37 billion. In our digital marketing solutions business, we recorded healthy revenue growth of 25.7% to RMB1.13 billion for the full year."

"Since the introduction of our upgraded Bitauto media app in October 2018, we have seen a significant surge in traffic, user time spent, and the number of sales leads generated. According to Questmobile, in February 2019 daily active users of the Bitauto media app increased by 135% as compared to October 2018. In our subscription business, we further improved our ARPU in the fourth quarter attributable to the migration of more members to our premium service packages. We also made progress in building out our independent dealer network and covered over 22,000 independent dealers in the fourth quarter. As of the end of this February, we had developed over 1,000 paying customers among the independent dealers."

"In our transaction services business, Yixin delivered steady results as its services continued to gain traction in the market. Yixin facilitated approximately 143,000 financed automobile transactions in the fourth quarter, while loan facilitation services contributed 60% of Yixin's total financed automobile transactions, up significantly from 24% in the previous quarter. We expect Yixin's loan facilitation services to continue growing in the following quarters."

"Looking to the year ahead, we are cautiously optimistic about the outlook for China's automobile industry, and we remain confident in our core business strategies to build Bitauto into China's top online auto media and transaction services platform. First, we will continue to improve content and user experience on the upgraded Bitauto media app to further solidify our leading industry position. With a wider range of engaging, user-centric content, our Bitauto media app's ability to fulfill user needs across the entire automobile consumption cycle including automobile research, purchase, ownership and replacement is driving popularity among automobile consumers. Moreover, since a majority of users log on before they browse the app's content, we are able to optimize our user profile database and improve the quality of the sales leads generated. We believe our upgraded media app will continue to enhance the value of the Bitauto brand and help reduce our customer acquisition costs going forward. Second, we will drive incremental revenue growth in our advertising business through data products which provide automakers with integrated results-driven marketing solutions. Building upon our extensive industry knowledge as well as our AI and big data analytic capabilities, our data products will allow automakers to roll-out highly targeted advertisements, content and marketing campaigns to achieve higher conversion results. Third, we will further develop our independent dealer network and expect to start monetization in 2019. As our subscription products already enjoy a high penetration rate in the new car 4S dealer market, we will look to further drive subscription revenue growth by offering tailored solutions for independent dealers, a vast and under-tapped market segment in China. Fourth, Yixin will remain focused on rapidly expanding its loan facilitation business, which is highly scalable and features a more attractive margin profile than its self-operated financing business. We believe that Yixin is well-positioned to gain market share in the automobile finance industry."

Mr. Ming Xu, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "We achieved solid top-line growth in the fourth quarter of 2018, with strong results across our advertising and subscription as well as transaction services businesses. Yixin saw healthy top-line results driven by solid growth in its total financed transaction volume, especially the rapid growth in its loan facilitation business. While we incurred additional marketing expenses during the quarter due to marketing campaigns to support our updated media app, we still saw margin expansion within our advertising and subscription business for the full year. Looking forward, with these factors behind us, we are optimistic about our margin outlook as we implement cost control measures and as Yixin enhances profitability through accelerating growth in its loan facilitation business."

Adoption of New Revenue Guidance ASC 606

In May 2014, the FASB issued a new revenue guidance ASC Topic 606, "Revenue from Contracts with Customers." Bitauto has completed its assessment and noted the most significant impact is the change from presentation of value-added tax ("VAT") on a gross basis to a net basis. Bitauto adopted the new revenue guidance starting from January 1, 2018 by applying the modified retrospective approach. Therefore, operating results for reporting periods beginning after January 1, 2018 are presented under Topic 606, while prior period amounts are not restated and continue to be reported in accordance with the Company's historic accounting method under Topic 605.

To provide investors with a meaningful year-over-year comparison, Bitauto has provided reconciliation tables for the impact of adopting this new revenue guidance for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2018 and the corresponding period in 2017. Other than in the Company's consolidated statements of operations, the operating results are discussed and analyzed under the new revenue guidance, including those for the comparative period in 2017.

First Quarter 2019 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB2.47 billion (US$359.2 million) to RMB2.52 billion (US$366.5 million) in the first quarter of 2019, representing a 13.8% to 16.1% increase from the corresponding period in 2018.

Third Quarter 2018 Financial Results

• Revenue in the third quarter of 2018 was RMB2.72 billion (US$396.7 million), a 25.9% increase from the corresponding period in 2017.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per ADS in the third quarter of 2018 was RMB3.66 (US$0.53) and RMB3.36 (US$0.49), respectively.

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "Despite weakening passenger vehicle sales in China since July, we were able to maintain healthy growth across our businesses in the third quarter of 2018 with total revenue increasing 25.9% year-over-year to RMB2.72 billion. In our advertising and subscription business, we achieved 7.7% year-over-year growth, with revenue reaching RMB1.06 billion. In particular, our core advertising and subscription business, which excludes contributions from subsidiaries in which we hold controlling interests, grew 14.9% year-over-year for the quarter. In our transaction services business, revenue saw steady growth of 39.6% year-over-year to RMB1.36 billion. In our digital marketing solutions business, revenue growth recovered in the third quarter, recording a 47.7% year-over-year increase to RMB305.0 million."

"In Bitauto's advertising business, our collaboration with key opinion leaders to provide customized content and services for automakers continued to gain traction. We will extend this initiative to a larger group of self-media and automakers as we explore its long-term potential as a growth driver. In our subscription business, we converted more members to premium service packages, and expanded our membership base as we roll out tailored services to China's vast market of independent automobile dealers. In our transaction services business, Yixin posted resilient results amid industry-wide headwinds, facilitating approximately 123,000 financed automobile transactions in the third quarter. In October, Yixin's accumulated financed automobile transactions reached one million, making it the first independent automobile finance platform in China to reach such a scale. In the third quarter, 24% of total financed automobile transactions were through third-party loan facilitation services, up from 19% in the previous quarter, and we expect this upward trend to continue."

"Looking to the future, despite softer sales in passenger vehicles over the past few months, we are confident in the long-term growth of China's automobile industry. In addition, against the backdrop of slower new car sales, we expect both the penetration rate of new car financing and used car sales to continue rising, a trend which will benefit Bitauto and Yixin. Looking ahead, we will remain dedicated to executing on our core business strategies. First, we will continue to enhance user stickiness and Bitauto's brand value through more engaging content initiatives, especially targeting China's younger population. We recently introduced major updates to our Bitauto App to further enhance user experience, attract traffic from younger users, and increase user stickiness through more compelling content and richer social features. Second, we will continue to develop new business areas with strong potential. For example, our advertising revenue from new energy automakers saw impressive growth, increasing nearly ten-fold in the third quarter compared to the same period last year. We also expanded our dealer network to cover over 19,000 independent dealers, through which we service more than 30,000 salespersons.Third, we will drive further synergies between Bitauto, Yixin, and other Bitauto ecosystem companies to create more diversified offerings and better serve consumers and business partners. As part of this, we will further enable crossover of user accounts and access to data resources across the Bitauto ecosystem including user profiles and automobile data generated through the entire automobile consumption cycle. With strong momentum and a market leading position, we are confident that we will continue to outgrow the overall auto media and transaction market, and achieve our goal of becoming China's top online auto media and transaction services platform."

Mr. Ming Xu, chief financial officer of Bitauto said, "As Andy mentioned, our advertising and subscription business maintained healthy revenue growth in the third quarter, and we further improved its operating margin through more effective cost control measures. Yixin also maintained its revenue growth momentum, thanks to greater accumulated loan volume in its self-operated business as well as its rapidly expanding loan facilitation business, which is more scalable and has faster revenue recognition. We were also pleased to see significant revenue growth in our digital marketing solutions business, due to a larger customer base, higher customer spending and a broader range of services. Looking ahead, we are confident that our superior and ever-improving products and services as well as traffic scale will continue to win the trust of our automaker and dealer customers, and we remain committed to driving top-line and bottom-line growth and creating value for our shareholders."

Fourth Quarter 2018 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB2.92 billion (US$425.2 million) to RMB2.97 billion (US$432.4 million) in the fourth quarter of 2018, representing a 17.2% to 19.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2017.

This forecast reflects revenues net of VAT under the new revenue guidance ASC Topic 606, which has been adopted by Bitauto starting from January 1, 2018. If presented on gross basis, as consistent with in year 2017, forecasted revenues would be between RMB3.14 billion (US$457.6 million) to RMB3.20 billion (US$465.3 million) in the fourth quarter of 2018, representing a 16.8% to 18.8% increase from the corresponding period in 2017.

This forecast takes into consideration of seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

Second Quarter 2018 Financial Results

• Bitauto reported revenue of RMB2.56 billion (US$387.5 million) for the second quarter of 2018, representing a 28.5% increase from the corresponding period in 2017. The increase in revenue was attributable to the growth of the Company's transaction services business and advertising and subscription business.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per ADS in the second quarter of 2018 amounted to RMB3.50 (US$0.53) and RMB3.22 (US$0.49), respectively, taking into consideration of the accretion to redeemable noncontrolling interests amounting to RMB7.0 million (US$1.1 million).

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "We were pleased to deliver a set of healthy results across our business lines in the second quarter of 2018, with total revenue growing 28.5% year-over-year to RMB2.56 billion. In particular, our transaction services revenue expanded rapidly with 50.2% year-over-year growth to RMB1.27 billion. We also maintained solid momentum in our advertising and subscription business, with 15.9% revenue growth year-over-year to RMB1.07 billion, driven by our ongoing revamping initiatives."

"In our advertising business, we deepened our collaboration with key opinion leaders to develop customized content and services for automakers, creating win-win-win connections between automakers, self-media and Bitauto. In our subscription business, we continued to optimize our business mix by converting more subscribers to our premium service package. We also expanded our subscription membership base by providing tailored services to China's vast number of unauthorized auto dealers. In our transaction services business, Yixin posted resilient results amid industry weakness, facilitating approximately 103,000 financed automobile transactions, a 19% increase from the corresponding period in 2017. In August, Yixin entered into strategic collaborations with WeBank for loan facilitation services. With five loan facilitation service partners in place, we expect to further expand Yixin's third-party loan facilitation services, which features strong scalability and an attractive margin profile. In the second quarter, 19% of total financed automobile transactions were through third-party loan facilitation services, up from 8% in the previous quarter."

"Looking ahead, we will continue to focus on our three core business strategies. First, we will further develop synergies between Bitauto, Yixin and other Bitauto family companies to build up more diversified offerings for consumers and our business partners. Second, we will continue to enhance the content and services that we provide to our user community to cover the entire automobile purchase and ownership cycle. This will allow us to increase user stickiness and engagement, and develop more comprehensive customer profiles. Third, we will continue to leverage our big data capabilities and support from our strategic shareholders to enable more user touchpoints and data crossover throughout the Bitauto ecosystem. Building on our market leading position, we are confident that we will achieve our goal of becoming China's top online auto media and transaction services platform."

Mr. Ming Xu, chief financial officer of Bitauto said, "We achieved steady topline growth from our media services in the second quarter, thanks mainly to higher ASPs as a result of rising spending by OEM advertisers, higher price points for subscription packages and a greater contribution from sales of premium membership packages. In addition, we made solid progress in improving our profitability through various measures to optimize our cost structure, including marketing expenses. As Yixin further expands its revenue contribution from its third party loan business, we also expect to see margin improvement in our transaction services business in the second half of 2018."

Third Quarter 2018 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB2.66 billion (US$402.0 million) to RMB2.71 billion (US$409.5 million) in the third quarter of 2018, representing a 22.9% to 25.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2017.

This forecast reflects revenues net of VAT under the new revenue guidance ASC Topic 606, which has been adopted by Bitauto starting from January 1, 2018. If presented on gross basis, as consistent with in year 2017, forecasted revenues would be between RMB2.87 billion (US$433.7 million) to RMB2.92 billion (US$441.3 million) in the third quarter of 2018, representing a 22.4% to 24.5% increase from the corresponding period in 2017.

This forecast takes into consideration of seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

BEIJING, March 19, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (BITA), a leading provider of internet content & marketing services, and transaction services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that the board of directors of the Company has approved a share repurchase program whereby Bitauto is authorized to repurchase its own ordinary shares represented by American depositary shares with an aggregate value of up to US$150 million within the next 12-month period. The Company expects to fund the repurchase out of its existing cash balance.‎ The proposed share repurchase may be effected on the open market at prevailing market prices and/or in negotiated transactions off the market from time to time as market conditions warrant in accordance with applicable requirements of Rule 10b-18 and the affirmative defense provisions under Rule 10b5-1 under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.‎

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief executive officer of Bitauto said, "The share purchase program announced today reflects our confidence in the long-term growth prospects of all of Bitauto's business lines. We will continue to activate synergies between Bitauto and Yixin, drive increased efficiencies in our media business, and realize economies of scale in Yixin."

Second Quarter 2017 Financial Results

• Revenue in the second quarter of 2017 was RMB2.17 billion (US$320.2 million), a 54.7% increase from the corresponding period in 2016.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per ADS in the second quarter of 2017 was RMB1.72 (US$0.25) and RMB1.60 (US$0.24), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto said, "In the second quarter of 2017 we saw exciting results from our operations amidst encouraging trends in online auto marketing. Total revenue grew 54.7% to reach RMB2.17 billion, as all of our business lines achieved solid growth. Most notably, transaction services generated RMB922.6 million in revenue representing 188.1% annual growth, while advertising and subscription services grew 13.1% year-over-year to RMB1.01 billion showing substantial pickup from recent periods."

"Our efforts in three key enhancement areas set out for 2017 -- traffic and content, conversion rate, and monetization – are paying off. With healthy market conditions and effective execution, we are confident to see continued growth for the rest of the year."

Mr. Andy Zhang, president of Bitauto, said, "In another robust quarter for transaction services, the increasing contribution from our platform business was particularly encouraging. We constantly optimize services and products provided on our platform to best fulfill demands from today's auto consumers who prefer the ease and transparency of online auto services. Our growing list of business partners includes auto dealers and financial institutions that are increasingly relying on us to tap into the digital consumer segment, while leveraging on our proven capability in online CRM and risk management."

Ms. Cynthia He, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "In the second quarter, we continued to see profit pickup at all levels, which again demonstrates increased economies of scale and operational efficiency. We are excited by the market opportunities in front of us, and ample cash flow will allow us to spend and invest optimally for sustained growth as China's preferred online auto consumption platform."

Third Quarter 2017 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB2.17 billion (US$320.1 million) to RMB2.22 billion (US$327.5 million) in the third quarter of 2017, representing a 42.3% to 45.6% increase from the corresponding period in 2016, or with direct vehicle sales being excluded, representing a 61.2% to 64.9% net revenue increase from the corresponding period in 2016.

First Quarter 2017 Financial Results

• Revenue in the first quarter of 2017 was RMB1.55 billion (US$224.5 million), a 41.1% increase from the corresponding period in 2016.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per ADS in the first quarter of 2017 was RMB1.22 (US$0.18) and RMB1.09 (US$0.16), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto said, "We are pleased to report a set of solid results for the first quarter of 2017, as total revenue for the quarter increased 41.1% year-over-year, with transaction services growing 193.5% year-over-year. Our Non-GAAP net income for the quarter rose 102.3% year-over-year to RMB156.9 million, thanks to improved operating efficiency and economies of scale in our new businesses."

"As we build Bitauto into the preferred platform for auto consumption in China, we remain focused on the following three areas: traffic, leads-to-transaction conversion rate, and monetization capabilities in both our media and transaction businesses. With regard to traffic, we recently formed strategic partnerships with Baidu on Aladdin covering both mobile and PC, and with leading news aggregation app Toutiao. These collaborations will enhance traffic, the quality of sales leads and the Bitauto brand. To increase our conversion rate and monetization capabilities, we will continue to develop China's most powerful auto related big data competence based on the most comprehensive and dynamically updated automobile and user behavior data. Big data is enabling us to uncover consumer demand at various stages of the auto purchase cycle and to generate more revenue with multi-purpose transactions covering financing, trade-ins and insurance. We will also apply this data competence to creating next-gen marketing tools to improve both user experience and drive media revenue growth. As we make gradual progress in these strategic areas, we also expect to benefit from enhanced synergies across our business lines."

Mr. Andy Zhang, president of Bitauto, said, "In the first quarter of 2017 our transaction services business saw strong growth as we successfully fulfilled rising consumer demand for online auto financing and offered more diversified products with partner institutions on our transaction services platform. We expect revenue and profit contributions from platform services to increase as part of transaction services going forward."

"We are also delighted to report that Yixin, Bitauto's transaction services subsidiary, has entered into agreements with strategic shareholders including Bitauto, Tencent, China Orient AMC International, and SF Express founder Mr. Wei Wang to receive new investments. Upon completion of the deal, Bitauto will hold no less than 48% of Yixin's outstanding share capital and continue to consolidate the financials of Yixin, which we believe will create additional long-term value for our shareholders."

Ms. Cynthia He, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "Bitauto delivered robust results for the first quarter of 2017, with continued momentum in our transaction services business and encouraging progress in enhancement efforts across media and transaction services. Our margins for the quarter also showed strong improvement as a result of new business growth and operating efficiency. Looking forward, we will continue to allocate resources towards enhancing the Bitauto brand, user traffic, and big data capabilities in order to strengthen our long-term competitiveness."

Second Quarter 2017 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB1.83 billion (US$265.9 million) to RMB1.88 billion (US$273.1 million) in the second quarter of 2017, representing a 30.4% to 34.0% increase from the corresponding period in 2016.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

Fourth Quarter 2016 Financial Results

• Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2016 was RMB1.75 billion (US$251.9 million), a 31.9% increase from the corresponding period in 2015. Revenue in fiscal year 2016 was RMB5.77 billion (US$831.5 million), a 35.7% increase from 2015.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net profit per ADS in the fourth quarter of 2016 was RMB0.19 (US$0.03) and RMB0.19 (US$0.03), respectively. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net profit per ADS in fiscal year 2016 was RMB3.35 (US$0.48) and RMB3.28 (US$0.47), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto said, "We are pleased to end 2016 with solid progress both in building out our platform for serving the entire auto purchase value chain in China and in driving synergies between our transaction services and media businesses. As a result, total revenue in 2016 grew 35.7% year-over-year with a 133.6% annual increase in transaction services for new and used cars. Combining Bitauto's clear leadership in transaction services with our robust media business, we aim to become the preferred platform for auto consumption in China."

"To achieve this goal, in 2017 we will focus on further enhancing our traffic, leads-to-transaction conversion rate, and monetization capabilities in both our media and transaction businesses. With regard to traffic, we will make efforts in branding and content to enhance user experience and stickiness, with a strong focus on the mobile end. To increase our conversion rate, we will roll out big data-driven marketing tools that are based on dynamic user behavior to help our customers target auto buyers more effectively, which will improve both user experience and our ability to earn media revenue. Lastly, in our transaction business, we will increase monetization by driving more multi-purpose transactions covering financing, insurance and trade-ins."

Mr. Andy Zhang, president of Bitauto, said, "As we execute our strategies for enhancing traffic, conversion and monetization, we will gain two significant competitive advantages. First is a platform effect that applies to both our media and transactions services businesses. On the media front, user stickiness will increase across our mobile, PC and partnering properties. In transaction services, our rapidly growing user base and value-added services will allow us to generate more revenue from third-party products, leading to more platform-derived revenue. The second competitive advantage will come from the application of big data , as we leverage China's most comprehensive, focused, and dynamic auto consumer information across our media and financial services businesses."

Ms. Cynthia He, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "Bitauto delivered solid results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2016. Looking ahead, we expect to see sustained strong revenue contribution from our transaction services business, as we benefit from our investments made in recent years in creating a financial services platform for new and used cars. With major investments in these areas behind us, in 2017 we will allocate more resources towards enhancing our user traffic and big data capabilities to drive further growth in both our advertising and subscription business and our transaction services business."

First Quarter 2017 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB1.48 billion (US$213.2 million) to RMB1.53 billion (US$220.4 million) in the first quarter of 2017.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

Additional Updates on the Results for the First Three Quarters of 2016

In the fourth quarter of 2016, the Company improved the operation system of its financial services platform. Benefitting from the improvement, the relevant revenue is recorded on a daily rather than monthly basis. As a result, the Company has recently determined that additional revenue of RMB11.8 million (US$1.7 million), RMB12.0 million (US$1.7 million) and RMB25.3 million (US$3.6 million) shall be recorded for the first, second and third quarter of 2016, respectively. In addition, after further review of relevant supporting documents obtained in the fourth quarter of 2016, the Company has recently determined that additional marketing expense of RMB23.0 million (US$3.3 million) shall be recorded for the third quarter of 2016. As a result, for the first, second and third quarter of 2016, net loss decreased and Non-GAAP net profit increased by RMB8.4 million (US$1.2 million), RMB8.5 million (US$1.2 million) and RMB0.7 million (US$0.1 million), respectively, compared to the previously disclosed amounts.

Third Quarter 2016 Financial Results

• Revenue in the third quarter of 2016 was RMB1.50 billion (US$224.9 million), a 33.1% increase from the corresponding period in 2015.
• Basic and diluted net loss per ADS in the third quarter of 2016 was RMB1.48 (US$0.22) and RMB1.48 (US$0.22), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto, commented, "We are pleased to have achieved a set of healthy results in the third quarter of 2016. In particular, our transaction services revenue grew by 78.8% year-over-year, with over 90,000 revenue-generating transactions executed in the quarter, as we continued to make solid progress in our online automotive financial platform services business."

"Bitauto has spent the past year strengthening our ecosystem, including our organic content and marketing and transaction capabilities, to provide consumers with the best possible automobile purchasing experience while enabling automakers and dealers to better target consumer needs. Through collaboration with our strategic partners Tencent, Baidu and JD.com, we also continue to accumulate comprehensive big data resources that will make our marketing solutions and transaction services more targeted and efficient for both buyers and sellers."

Mr. Andy Zhang, president of Bitauto, said, "Bitauto will continue to execute on our core business strategies to enhance our long-term competitiveness. First, we will further develop our automobile transaction platform, including e-commerce, financial services, and after-sales services, with better purchasing experience as well as greater efficiency of our service infrastructure, both online and offline. Second, we will strive to further increase our mobile monetization capability by further incorporating the use of big data analytics to offer more robust result-driven marketing solutions. Third, we will continue to strengthen our dealer services offerings on mobile devices and social media."

Ms. Cynthia He, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "Bitauto maintained strong top-line growth in the third quarter of 2016, primarily driven by the continued rapid expansion of our transaction services business coupled with steady growth in our more traditional business segments. We are encouraged by the momentum we are seeing in the auto finance and used car markets, both of which will be important drivers of our future growth. At the same time, our efforts in enhancing our internal capabilities will enable us to reap market benefits more efficiently."

Fourth Quarter 2016 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB1.58 billion (US$236.9 million) to RMB1.63 billion (US$244.4 million) in the fourth quarter of 2016.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

BEIJING, Sept. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (BITA), a leading provider of internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced the appointment of Cynthia He as chief financial officer (CFO), effective immediately. She will succeed Andy Zhang, who will continue in his role as president of Bitauto and will work closely with Cynthia to ensure a seamless transition.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto, said, "We're delighted that Cynthia will join Bitauto at this exciting time. Coming from a strong finance and investor relations background, Cynthia has deep experience working with Chinese and multinational companies across a range of corporate disciplines. Combined with her strong understanding of Bitauto from her time working with us as an external advisor and her experience leading investor relations at Baidu, Cynthia is uniquely qualified to take on the role of CFO. I am confident that she will be a fantastic addition to our senior team."

Ms. He joins Bitauto from Deutsche Bank China where she ran corporate communications for the past four years. Her previous roles have included head of investor relations for Baidu, the leading Chinese language internet search provider, advisor with international consultancy Brunswick Group and analyst with Standard & Poor's Rating Services. She also served as Chief China Representative for Ignite! Learning, a leading US educational multimedia courseware provider. Ms. He holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA from New York University's Stern School of Business.

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BEIJING, Aug. 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited (BITA) ("Bitauto" or the "Company"), a leading provider of internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that an investor consortium comprised of Tencent Holdings Limited (SEHK:00700) ("Tencent"), a leading provider of comprehensive internet services in China, Baidu, Inc. (BIDU) ("Baidu"), the leading Chinese language internet search provider, JD.com, Inc. (JD) ("JD.com"), a leading e-commerce company in China, Bitauto and other investors has entered into definitive agreements pursuant to which the investor consortium agrees to make investments totaling US$550 million in cash in Yixin Capital Limited ("Yixin Capital"), a subsidiary of Bitauto primarily engaged in e-commerce-related automotive financing platform business.

Bitauto will hold an approximately 47% equity stake in Yixin Capital on a fully diluted basis and will have control over Yixin Capital with majority of voting power at the board upon closings. Bitauto will continue to consolidate the financials of Yixin Capital.

The combination of data, user and capital resources contributed by the investors will allow Yixin Capital to perform more accurate and efficient credit evaluations and increase its ability to provide financing products and services to targeted customers. Yixin Capital will also benefit from access to its partners' broad user resources, which will help to drive customer acquisition and brand awareness. The investor consortium, which includes companies with leading financial services businesses, will explore additional capital funding opportunities with Yixin Capital as it continues to expand its market share.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto, said, "Yixin Capital is an important part of Bitauto's platform as we work to create the best possible car purchasing experience for China's new and used car consumers. Today, we are delighted to announce this new investment from a roster of leading global companies, including strategic partners Tencent, Baidu and JD.com. We are confident that with the strong support of our partners, Yixin Capital is well positioned for long-term success in China's online automotive financing industry."

BEIJING, June 6, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Baidu, Inc. (BIDU) ("Baidu"), the leading Chinese language internet search provider, Tencent Holdings Limited (SEHK:00700) ("Tencent"), a leading provider of comprehensive internet services in China, and JD.com, Inc. (JD) ("JD.com"), the leading online direct sales company in China, today jointly announced that they have entered into definitive agreements pursuant to which Baidu, Tencent and JD.com each agrees to invest US$50 million in Bitauto Holdings Limited (BITA) ("BitAuto"), a leading provider of internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry.

Baidu, Tencent and JD.com each agrees to purchase 2,471,577 newly issued ordinary shares of Bitauto at US$20.23 per share, corresponding to US$20.23 per American depositary share ("ADS"), each representing one ordinary share of Bitauto. The purchase price represents the average volume weighted closing trading price of Bitauto's ADSs for the five trading days prior to the signing of the definitive agreements. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.

Bitauto also announced that pursuant to definitive agreements entered into by and between Bitauto and PA Grand Opportunity Limited ("PAG"), Bitauto agrees to issue convertible bonds ("CBs") to PAG and/or its affiliates in an aggregate principal amount of up to US$150 million. Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto will indirectly purchase a portion of the CBs through PAG under a total return swap arrangement with PAG.

Upon the closing of both transactions, Baidu, Tencent, JD.com and holders of the CBs will hold 3.2%, 7.1%, 23.5% and 8.2%, respectively, of Bitauto's outstanding shares on a fully diluted basis taking into effect the new issuance and the conversion of the CBs at the initial conversion price.

Mr. Li commented, "We are delighted to announce today the strengthening of our strategic partnership with JD.com and Tencent, and the establishment of a new partnership with Baidu, the leader in Chinese language online search. We are also pleased to welcome PAG, a leading regional private investment firm, as an important investor. My personal participation in this transaction is a further testament to management's strong confidence in Bitauto's future development."

"Through our cooperation over the past year with JD.com and Tencent, China's leaders in world-class e-commerce, social media and big data, we have gained tremendous momentum in making Bitauto the industry leader in online automobile transactions. Through our new partnership with Baidu, we expect to leverage its leadership in mobile and desktop online search, big data and transaction services platforms for additional strategic advantages as we continue to create the industry leading new and used car purchasing experience for customers in China."

First Quarter 2016 Financial Results

• Revenue in the first quarter of 2016 was RMB1.08 billion (US$168.0 million), a 46.3% increase from the corresponding period in 2015.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net profit per ADS in the first quarter of 2016 was RMB0.48 (US$0.07) and RMB0.47 (US$0.07), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "We are pleased to deliver a set of steady results for the first quarter of 2016, with revenue growing 46.3% year-over-year. Our automobile transaction services business continued to show exciting growth as we expanded the scale of our transaction services and improved our monetization capability. "

"Bitauto has strived to provide automobile customers with world class automotive marketing solutions and automobile transaction services. In the first quarter of 2016, we generated approximately 27 million sales leads for our automobile customers, with over 70% of leads generated from mobile. Our automobile transaction services business maintained its industry leadership with over 50,000 revenue-generating transactions executed in the first quarter of 2016."

"In 2016, Bitauto will continue to execute on our core business strategies to enhance our long-term competitiveness. First, we plan to further develop our automobile transaction services, including automobile transactions, CRM and online automotive financial platform services, with better consumer purchasing experience and greater efficiency of our online and offline service infrastructure. Second, we will strive to further increase our mobile monetization capability as we continue to improve our mobile offerings with more targeted marketing solutions enabled by our big data analytics. Third, we will continue to strengthen our dealer services offering particularly on mobile devices and social media."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "We are pleased to see healthy growth across our three business segments in the first quarter of 2016 as our strategic investments in expanding and improving our service offerings and building Bitauto's brand over the past year continue to show results. Looking forward, we will further improve our operating efficiency while pursuing various growth initiatives especially within the automobile transaction services business. "

Second Quarter 2016 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB1.35 billion (US$209.4 million) to RMB1.40 billion (US$217.1 million) in the second quarter of 2016.

Fourth Quarter 2015 Financial Results

• Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2015 was RMB1.24 billion (US$191.3 million), a 27.1% increase from the corresponding period in 2014. Revenue in fiscal year 2015 was RMB4.01 billion (US$619.3 million), a 63.1% increase from 2014.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the fourth quarter of 2015 was RMB1.68 (US$0.26) and RMB1.63 (US$0.25), respectively. Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in fiscal year 2015 was RMB5.86 (US$0.90) and RMB5.47 (US$0.84), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "We are pleased to announce healthy results for the fourth quarter of 2015, with revenue growing 27.1% year-over-year. For the full year 2015, Bitauto made significant progress across our businesses and delivered strong growth. Our top-line grew 63.1% year-over-year, with revenue from our EP platform growing 122.3% year-over-year in 2015."

"In 2015, Bitauto generated over 100 million sales leads for our automobile customers, with approximately 70% of leads generated from mobile. Our EP platform maintained its industry leading position with peak paid customers exceeding 24,900 in 2015. We continued to make strategic investments and expanded our automobile transaction services offering in order to optimize consumers' automobile buying experience online and offline. We have successfully developed various growth initiatives in Bitauto's automobile transaction services business which have been well received by the market."

"Looking to 2016, we will continue to execute on Bitauto's core business strategies to strengthen our industry leadership. First, we will continue to optimize our offline service infrastructure, further develop our transaction services, including automobile transactions, CRM and automotive financing services, and improve the overall efficiency of our transaction services. Second, we will strive to further improve the automobile buying experience for customers and enhance Bitauto's brand in the automobile transaction market. Third, we will continue to increase our mobile monetization capability from core businesses, such as advertising and transaction services, through tighter integration with our mobile offerings."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "Over the past year, Bitauto continued to invest in building our brand and expanding our core businesses, especially the automobile transaction services business. In 2016, we will focus on maintaining growth while enhancing our operating efficiency and solidifying our long-term competitiveness. Beginning from the first quarter of 2016, Bitauto will change its accounting standards from International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) to accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (U.S. GAAP). In addition, in order to better reflect Bitauto's business structure and provide more clarity regarding its operating performance, beginning from the first quarter of 2016, the company will report financial results across three business segments: advertising and subscription business, transaction services business and digital marketing solutions business."

First Quarter 2016 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB1.05 billion (US$162.4 million) to RMB1.09 billion (US$167.8 million) in the first quarter of 2016. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent to be in the range of RMB58.0 million (US$9.0 million) to RMB68.0 million (US$10.5 million) in the first quarter of 2016.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

Third Quarter 2015 Financial Results

• Revenue in the third quarter of 2015 was RMB1.07 billion (US$167.6 million), a 75.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2014.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the third quarter of 2015 was RMB1.81 (US$0.28) and RMB1.50 (US$0.24), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "We are pleased to deliver another set of healthy results for the third quarter of 2015, with revenue growing 75.2% year-over-year. Our EP platform continued to prove popular among automobile customers, with year-over-year growth of 144.6% for the quarter."

"During the third quarter, Bitauto generated over 27 million sales leads for our automobile customers, with a rising percentage of leads generated from mobile. We also continued to expand our transaction services to optimize consumers' automobile buying experience. Leveraging Bitauto's expertise in the automobile industry and JD.com's strong e-commerce resources, JD.com's automobile channel operated by Bitauto saw steady progress throughout the quarter. We look forward to continuing our close collaboration with JD.com in the quarters to come."

"Looking ahead, we will continue to execute on Bitauto's three core business strategies. First, we will continue to focus on Bitauto's long-term development by investing in and optimizing our transaction services, including automobile transactions, CRM and automotive financing services. Second, we will continue to strengthen our offline service infrastructure to create an even better customer experience and to further enhance Bitauto's brand in the automobile transaction market. Third, we will continue to invest in improving Bitauto's mobile products and services. We remain confident that these strategies will help further solidify our industry leadership."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "In the third quarter, we continued to see steady growth in our core business areas and were pleased with the solid progress of our transaction services business. In the fourth quarter, we will continue building scale and operating efficiency in our transaction services business in order to further expand Bitauto's market leadership."

Fourth Quarter 2015 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB1.20 billion (US$188.8 million) to RMB1.23 billion (US$193.5 million) in the fourth quarter of 2015, representing a 23.0% to 26.1% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent to be in the range of RMB71.1 million (US$11.2 million) to RMB81.1 million (US$12.8 million) in the fourth quarter of 2015, representing a 57.3% to 62.6% year-over-year decrease. As a result, fiscal year 2015 annual revenue is expected to be in the range of RMB3.97 billion ($625.0 million) to RMB4.00 billion ($629.7 million), representing a 61.5% to 62.8% year-over-year increase. Non-GAAP profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent is expected to be in the range of RMB310.0 million ($48.8 million) to RMB320.0 million ($50.3 million), representing a 35.9% to 37.9% year-over-year decrease.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

BEIJING, August 14, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced the appointment of Mr. Andy Zhang to the position of chief operating officer in addition to his role as the Company's chief financial officer. In his expanded role, Mr. Zhang will take on additional responsibility for the Company's new business initiatives.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "We are delighted to announce that Andy will take on the additional role of chief operating officer. Since joining in 2006, Andy has been instrumental to Bitauto's success, and in his expanded role we look forward to benefiting further from his background and deep understanding of China's automotive industry."

Mr. Zhang has served as Bitauto's chief financial officer since 2009 and was the Company's vice president of finance from 2006 to 2009. Prior to joining Bitauto, Mr. Zhang also worked at Ernst & Young LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP from 2000 to 2004. Mr. Zhang received both of his Bachelor's degrees in Finance and Accounting from New York University, and is a certified public accountant in the state of New York.

Second Quarter 2015 Financial Results

• Revenue in the second quarter of 2015 was RMB1.01 billion (US$162.2 million), a 92.5% increase from the corresponding period in 2014.

• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the second quarter of 2015 was RMB1.91 (US$0.31) and RMB1.66 (US$0.27), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "We are pleased to have concluded the second quarter of 2015 with solid results including top-line growth of 92.5% year-over-year. Our EP platform business maintained a strong performance with 191.2% year-over-year growth in the second quarter."

"In our core business segment, the company generated over 25 million sales leads for our automobile customers during the second quarter, with the share of leads generated from mobile continuing to rise. Our transaction platforms provided China's leading automobile buying experience to a growing number of consumers, and we received positive market feedback for our expanding suite of transaction services. We were also pleased with the steady growth of JD.com's automobile channel operated by Bitauto, on which both sides have been collaborating closely since its launch on April 15, 2015."

"In the quarters ahead, Bitauto will continue to execute on our three core business strategies. First, we plan to strengthen our transaction services, including our automobile transaction, CRM and automotive financing services, and promote the development of our EP platform. Second, we expect to increase investment in our offline service infrastructure to create an even better customer experience, and to strengthen Bitauto's brand in the automobile transaction market. Third, we plan to continue to increase our investment in optimizing Bitauto's mobile products and services. We are confident that these strategies will further solidify our industry leadership."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, commented, "During the second quarter we continued to see healthy top line growth driven by strength in our core businesses along with the expansion of our transaction services and mobile offerings. In particular, transaction services grew substantially to over 15% of total revenue for the second quarter. Looking ahead, we will remain committed to our core business strategies while continuing to invest in our transaction services business and in growing brand awareness to further strengthen Bitauto's position in China's automobile market."

Third Quarter 2015 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB1.00 billion (US$161.3 million) to RMB1.05 billion (US$169.4 million) in the third quarter of 2015, representing a 64.5% to 72.7% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent in the range of RMB95.0 million (US$15.3 million) to RMB105.0 million (US$16.9 million) in the third quarter of 2015, representing a 24.9% to 32.1% year-over-year decrease.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

First Quarter 2015 Financial Results

• Bitauto reported revenue of RMB701.3 million (US$113.1 million) for the first quarter of 2015, including advertising and subscription revenue of RMB605.5 million (US$97.7 million) and agent service revenue[2] of RMB95.8 million (US$15.5 million), representing a 98.4% increase from the corresponding period in 2014.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the first quarter of 2015 was RMB0.29 (US$0.05) and RMB0.23 (US$0.04), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "For the first quarter of 2015, Bitauto saw strong top-line growth of 98.4% year-over-year. Our bottom line results also surpassed our previous guidance."

"During the quarter, the Company generated over 25 million sales leads for our customers, with an increasingly large percentage of leads coming from the mobile end. We are excited to see consumers embrace the advantages of conducting automobile transactions through Bitauto's online platforms and offline services, including Huimaiche and Yiche Mall. Following the January announcement of our strategic partnership with JD.com and Tencent, on April 15, we were delighted to launch JD.com automobile channel, operated exclusively by Bitauto. Early market reaction has been very positive and we will work closely with JD.com to promote the future development of the automobile channel in the months and years ahead."

"In the quarters ahead, we will continue to execute on our three core business strategies. First, we will expand the range of value-added services on our EP platform, including our automobile transaction, CRM and automotive financing services. Second, we will invest heavily in our online and offline service infrastructure to create an even better automobile buying experience. Third, we will continue to invest in the Bitauto brand, with an emphasis on our mobile offerings. We are confident that these strategies will further solidify our industry leadership."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "During the quarter we were pleased to see our core businesses remain robust as we made significant progress building out our new business areas, including automobile transaction services and mobile offerings. Starting from the second quarter, we will appoint PwC as our independent auditor. PwC is also the auditor for our partners JD.com and Tencent. Having them on board will facilitate closer coordination among us and will pave the way to expand these relationships in the future. We appreciate Ernst & Young Hua Ming LLP's high-quality service and their commitment over the past several years."

Second Quarter 2015 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB970.0 million (US$156.5 million) to RMB1.0 billion (US$161.3 million) in the second quarter of 2015, representing a 85.7% to 91.5% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent in the range of RMB80.0 million (US$12.9 million) to RMB100.0 million (US$16.1 million) in the second quarter of 2015, representing a 19.5% to 35.6% year-over-year decrease.

Fourth Quarter 2014 Financial  Results

• Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2014 was RMB975.2 million (US$157.2 million), a 101.7% increase from the corresponding period in 2013. Revenue in fiscal year 2014 was RMB2.46 billion (US$396.3 million), a 70.8% increase from 2013.

• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the fourth quarter of 2014 was RMB4.50 (US$0.73) and RMB4.25 (US$0.68), respectively. Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in fiscal year 2014 was RMB11.96 (US$1.93) and RMB11.21 (US$1.81), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "We were pleased to close the year with a solid fourth quarter, achieving year-over-year revenue growth of 101.7% and non-GAAP profit growth of 91.1%. We also delivered a strong set of results for the full year of 2014, with revenue growth of 70.8% and non-GAAP profit growth of 94.1%, as compared to 2013."

"In 2014, we further strengthened our presence among automobile buyers and our automaker and dealer customers. Our EP platform generated over 60 million general sales leads for our dealer customers, with rising contribution from mobile platforms. Bitauto's transaction-based products and services have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from the market with a continuously rising number of automobile transactions completed via our online platforms and offline services, including Huimaiche and Yiche Mall, during the fourth quarter of 2014."

"Building upon the successful completion of our partnership transactions with JD.com and Tencent in February 2015, and leveraging the core strengths and competitive advantages of the three companies, we are confident that we will achieve our goal of creating China's leading ecosystem for new and used car transactions and related value-added services, and providing automobile customers with the best possible car purchasing experience."

"Looking into 2015, we are committed to executing on our three core business strategies. First, we will continue to expand the variety of value-added services on our EP platform, including our automobile transactions, automotive financing and CRM services. Second, we will heavily invest in expanding our online and offline service infrastructure to enhance the automobile buying experience for consumers. Third, we will continue to build our Bitauto brand, with a focus on our mobile offerings. We are confident that these strategies will further solidify our industry leadership."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "Solid execution on our core growth strategies led to strong growth in revenue and non-GAAP profit in the fourth quarter and the full year of 2014. Moving into 2015, while we continue to see strong top line momentum across business segments, we are more rapidly expanding and investing into new business areas including automobile transaction services and mobile offerings, which we believe will drive sustainable growth for Bitauto in the long run."

Mr. Zhang added, "In order to better reflect the structure of our business, starting from the first quarter of 2015, we will be reporting results in three segments: our advertising business, EP platform business, and digital marketing solutions business. Revenue from taoche.com will be accounted for in the appropriate business segments."

First Quarter 2015 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB630.0 million (US$101.5 million) to RMB650.0 million (US$104.8 million) in the first quarter of 2015, representing a 78.2% to 83.9% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP loss/profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent from RMB-5.0 million (US$-0.8 million) to RMB5.0 million (US$0.8 million) in the first quarter of 2015.

BEIJING, February 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced it successfully closed the transaction, previously announced on January 9, 2015, with JD.com, Inc. ("JD.com", Nasdaq: JD), the leading online direct sales company in China and Tencent Holdings Limited ("Tencent", SEHK: 00700), a leading provider of comprehensive Internet services in China.

BEIJING, January 13, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Lentuo International Inc. (NYSE: LAS) ("Lentuo" or "the Company"), a leading non-state-owned automobile retailer headquartered in Beijing, today announced that its joint venture with Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto") (NYSE: BITA) and Youxinpai (Beijing) Information Technology Co., Ltd. ("UXIN") announced on August 15, 2014 has been officially registered with the Beijing Municipal Administration of Industry and Commerce.

With operational planning having already begun, the JV will begin developing what is expected to be the largest Online-to-Offline platform exclusively dedicated to certified premium pre-owned cars in China.

The JV is expected to contribute significantly to the premium cars and pre-owned cars businesses of the Company, two of its four strategic pillars. It will initially be centered on Beijing, where sales of pre-owned cars, and particularly premium pre-owned cars, are growing much faster than sales of new cars, and it will gradually expand to other cities. With respect to the expansion outside Beijing, the recently announced BMW dealership in Gaobedian while contributing to geographic diversification, another strategic pillar of the Company, will eventually add to the volume of premium pre-owned cars for sale.

Mr. Hetong Guo, Founder and Chairman of Lentuo International, commented, "The official registration is another step towards establishing the JV and bringing it into full operational mode. Growth in the pre-owned car market in China continues to accelerate, as we expected. According to the most recently published data from the China Automobile Dealers Association, 4.9million pre-owned cars were sold in the first 10 months of 2014, a 16.78% increase compared to the same period in 2013for a total value of 294.4 billion RMB, up 27.08% compared to the same period of 2013. Such strong momentum bodes well for the future of this joint venture and we are looking confidently ahead to see it become fully operational and contribute to further growth and increased shareholder value."

BEIJING, January 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, JD.com, Inc. ("JD.com", Nasdaq: JD), the leading online direct sales company in China and Tencent Holdings Limited ("Tencent", SEHK: 00700), a leading provider of comprehensive Internet services in China, today jointly announced that they have entered into definitive agreements pursuant to which JD.com and Tencent will make investments in Bitauto totaling approximately US$1.3 billion in cash and resources, and investments totaling US$250 million in cash in YiXin Capital Limited ("YiXin Capital"), a subsidiary of Bitauto primarily engaged in e-commerce-related automotive financing platform business. Upon completion of the transactions, the three companies will work together to provide enhanced online automotive transaction services to car buyers across China.

Under the terms of the agreements, JD.com will invest a combination of US$400 million in cash and approximately US$750 million of resources, including exclusive access to the new and used car channels on JD.com's e-commerce sites including mobile apps and additional support from its key platforms, as consideration for a total of approximately US$1.15 billion of newly issued ordinary shares from Bitauto. Tencent will also purchase US$150 million of newly issued ordinary shares from Bitauto. Bitauto's newly issued ordinary shares will be priced at US$73.31 per share, corresponding to US$73.31 per American Depositary Share of Bitauto, each representing one ordinary share. The purchase price represents the average closing trading price of Bitauto's ADSs for the twenty trading days prior to the signing of the agreements. In addition, JD.com and Tencent will invest US$100 million and US$150 million, respectively, in newly issued series A preferred shares of YiXin Capital.

The transactions are expected to close in the first half of 2015, subject to customary closing conditions, after which JD.com and Tencent will hold 25% and 3.3% of the Company's outstanding shares on a fully diluted basis, respectively, and JD.com will have one seat on Bitauto's board of directors. JD.com and Tencent will hold 17.7% and 26.6% of YiXin Capital, respectively, upon closing.

"As China's leaders in world-class e-commerce, social media and big data, we could not ask for partners more ideally positioned to support Bitauto than JD.com and Tencent as we build out China's leading platform for automotive e-commerce," said William Bin Li, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bitauto. "We are deeply honored to form an in-depth strategic partnership with these two companies. In the months ahead, we will aggressively invest to solidify Bitauto's industry leadership and build market share. We are confident about the outlook of our automotive e-commerce business. Our goal has always been to provide China's new and used car customers with the best possible car purchasing experience."

Mr. Richard Liu, founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of JD.com, commented, "This landmark deal will bolster Bitauto's position as China's leader in the auto e-commerce space, while providing JD.com customers an outstanding gateway to the car market. This investment is a major step forward in our long-term strategy of partnering with industry leaders in the vertical categories most important to our customers. Through strategic partnerships with trusted companies like Bitauto and Tencent, we are building our vision of making JD.com a one-stop solution for Chinese consumers looking to buy authentic, high-quality products."

Mr. Martin Lau, President of Tencent, added "With the pooled auto e-commerce resources of Bitauto and JD.com and our extensive user base and analytics and auto-related media assets, we collectively can build an efficient online platform to facilitate online automotive transactions and provide one-stop financing solutions to auto buyers in China. We look forward to collaborating with them to better serve users and expand our catalogue of online-to-offline service offerings."

Third Quarter 2014 Unaudited Financial Results

• Revenue in the third quarter of 2014 was RMB608.0 million (US$99.0 million), a 60.7% increase from the corresponding period in 2013.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent in the third quarter of 2014 was RMB3.33 (US$0.54) and RMB3.13 (US$0.51), respectively. 

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "I am pleased to report that we delivered another quarter of strong top and bottom line results with year-over-year revenue growth of 60.7% and non-GAAP profit growth of 85.3% in the third quarter of 2014. In particular, our bitauto.com advertising and EP platform businesses drove positive results with year-over-year revenue growth of 67.8% and 67.6%, respectively."

"I'm also pleased to say that in the third quarter of 2014 our EP platform generated over 15.5 million general sales leads for our auto dealer customers with our mobile product offerings becoming an increasingly important generator of sales leads. We continued our efforts in developing new products and services, including huimaiche.com, which continues to receive positive feedback from the market."

"Moving forward, we will remain focused on developing our mobile product and service offerings and executing on our established core growth strategies. First, we will expand the variety of value-added services on the EP platform and to drive forward our pay-for-performance and transaction services and products. Second, we will continue our brand building efforts and in particular, we will work to further enhance Bitauto's brand recognition. Third, we will continue to invest in our used car business."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "We continued to see strong growth in our revenue and non-GAAP profit in the third quarter of 2014. We were pleased to expand our operating margin for the quarter to 25.9% from 20.2% in the third quarter of last year. Going forward, our priority remains on further increasing operating efficiency."

Fourth Quarter 2014 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB720.0 million (US$117.3 million) to RMB740.0 million (US$120.6 million) in the fourth quarter of 2014, representing a 48.9% to 53.0% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent in the range of RMB158.0 million (US$25.7 million) to RMB168.0 million (US$27.4 million) in the fourth quarter of 2014, representing a 52.9% to 62.6% year-over-year increase.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

BEIJING, August 28, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Lentuo International Inc. (NYSE: LAS) ("Lentuo" or "the Company"), a leading non-state-owned automobile retailer headquartered in Beijing, Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, and Youxinpai (Beijing) Information Technology Co., Ltd. ("UXIN"), a leading professional auto auction service provider in China, today announced that senior management attended a ceremony in Beijing marking the signing of the joint venture ("JV") agreement.

The ceremony was presided over by Mr. William Bin Li, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bitauto, Mr. Chris Kun Dai, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of UXIN, and Mr. Hetong Guo, Founder and Chairman of Lentuo International. Mr. Lei Luo, Vice-General Secretary of CADA was also in attendance and delivered congratulatory remarks.

The establishment of the JV is moving rapidly and smoothly. The partners expect the JV to be officially registered by the end of September 2014 and are cooperating actively to begin operations before the end of December 2014.

The joint venture, which will originally be centered on Beijing and gradually expand to other cities, will integrate the resources of each partner to build the largest Online-to-Offline platform exclusively focused on high-end pre-owned cars in China. Lentuo will own 60% of the joint venture with Bitauto and UXIN each holding 20%.

Joint Venture to Solidify Bitauto's Leading Position in China's Used Car Market

BEIJING, August 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to establish a joint venture ("JV") company, with China Yong Da Automobiles Services Holdings Limited ("Yong Da Group"), one of China's leading automotive dealership groups, and Youxinpai (Beijing) Information Technology Co., Ltd. ("UXIN"), a leading professional electronic auction service provider for used cars in China.

By partnering with Yong Da Group and UXIN, Bitauto's proprietary used car website, taoche.com, will benefit from an expanded inventory of available-for-sale used cars. China's used car market has huge, long-term growth potential yet remains under-served. The joint venture will ultimately help better serve the market by ensuring greater numbers of car buyers across China, have easy access to authentic, transparent and comprehensive used cars information.

"Bitauto is delighted to partner with Yong Da Group and UXIN," said Mr. William Bin Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto. "We continue to execute on our long-term, used car strategy. This new partnership will help extend our already leading position and strengthen our existing competitive advantages within China's used car industry. We look forward to delivering customers with more extensive used car information via our taoche.com website and are confident this will ensure it remains the go-to website for used car listings in China."

Mr. Zhang De'an, chairman of Yong Da Group commented, "As a leading network of auto dealerships, we have access to a vast pool of used car information. We are pleased to share this with Bitauto and UXIN and look forward to drawing on each other's resources and expertise. We are confident the partnership will help provide our auto dealerships with more effective marketing activities and promote our used car inventory to a broader range of potential consumers."

Mr. Chris Dai Kun, chairman and chief executive officer of UXIN added, "We are thrilled to partner with Bitauto and Yong Da Group. Through the joint venture, we look forward to bringing our leading online auction platform and technology to more auto dealers. The online-to-offline trend in the used car sales grows fast. We are confident that the new partnership can truly facilitate the development of China's online used car market."

BEIJING, Aug. 15, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or "the Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry today announced that it has entered into an agreement to establish a joint venture (the "JV"), with Lentuo International Inc. (NYSE: LAS) ("Lentuo" or "the Company"), a leading non-state-owned automobile retailer headquartered in Beijing, and Youxinpai (Beijing) Information Technology Co., Ltd. ("UXIN"), a leading professional auto auction service provider in China.

The JV will integrate the companies' nationwide resources into an online-to-offline platform focused on high-end used cars in China. The addition of Lentuo's substantial offline used car inventory to Bitauto's listings will further enhance customer choice, helping to extend the Company's leadership in used car transactions.

"China's used car market is set for rapid growth in order to meet the growing needs of customers in China. We are pleased to cooperate with Lentuo and are confident that the combination of Bitauto's established and growing online presence, technological know-how and analytical capabilities together with Lentuo's diversified and high quality offline resources will make this joint venture a success," said Mr. William Bin Li, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bitauto.

Mr. Hetong Guo, Founder and Chairman of Lentuo International commented, "We are extremely excited that major and well established companies in the Chinese pre-owned car market such as Bitauto and UXIN have decided to partner with us. The experience we have accumulated over the past few years, the range of our services and products and the demonstrated quality of our technical resources and processes, coupled with the extensive online resources and demonstrated business success of Bitauto and UXIN constitute the best possible combination of talent and track record in the pre-owned car market in China. We have no doubt that this JV will realize its objectives and achieve great success."

Mr. Chris Kun Dai, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of UXIN added, "We are excited to be a part of this JV. Our leading online auction platform and strong expertise in auctioning used car cars, and the quality of Lentuo's extensive and rigorous certification process will maximize the value of car inventories and build a leading business that will contribute to a healthier used car market in China."

Second Quarter 2014 Financial Results

• Revenue in the second quarter of 2014 was RMB522.3 million (US$84.2 million), a 54.5% increase from the corresponding period in 2013.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the second quarter of 2014 was RMB2.99 (US$0.48) and RMB2.80 (US$0.45), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "I am pleased to report that we delivered another quarter of strong top and bottom line results with year-over-year revenue growth of 54.5% and non-GAAP profit growth of 110.3% in the second quarter of 2014. In particular, our bitauto.com advertising and EP platform businesses continued to drive positive results with year-over-year revenue growth of 67.0% and 59.4%, respectively."

"I'm also pleased to say that in the second quarter of 2014 our EP platform generated over 14.0 million general sales leads[2] for our auto dealer customers. We continued our efforts in developing pay-for-performance and transaction services and products, including huimaiche.com, our newly-launched C2B website, which has received positive market feedback. Investing in our mobile product offerings remains a priority and in June, we signed a strategic agreement with Baidu to be the exclusive supplier of auto-related content for the mobile segment of Baidu's Aladdin Platform. Furthermore, the number of active users of our "Bitauto Auto Price" app continues to grow and it has already become a significant generator of sales leads for our auto dealer customers.

"Moving forward, we continue to focus on developing our mobile product and service offerings and to execute our established three core growth strategies. First, we continue to expand the variety of value-added services on the EP platform and to drive forward our pay-for-performance and transaction services and products. Second, we continue our brand building efforts and in particular, to further enhance bitauto.com's brand recognition. On this front, we intend to enhance our advertising efforts via traditional offline platforms starting from the third quarter. Third, we continue to invest in our used car business."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said: "We continued to see strong top and bottom line results driven by our popular online and mobile platforms for automaker and auto dealer customers. Improving operating efficiencies remains a priority and we were pleased to expand our operating margin for the quarter to 25.2% from 15.0% in the second quarter of last year."

Third Quarter 2014 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB550.0 million (US$88.7 million) to RMB570.0 million (US$91.9 million) in the third quarter of 2014, representing a 45.4% to 50.7% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP profit in the range of RMB125.0 million (US$20.2 million) to RMB132.0 million (US$21.3 million) in the third quarter of 2014, representing a 60.9% to 69.9% year-over-year increase.

BEIJING, June 5 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that it has been selected by Baidu, Inc. ("Baidu") (NASDAQ: BIDU), the leading Chinese language internet search provider, to be the exclusive supplier for auto-related content on the mobile version of Aladdin, Baidu's Open Data Platform, until December 31, 2014.

William Bin Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "We are delighted to partner with Baidu and to continue providing mobile users with quick and easy access to Bitauto's high quality and comprehensive auto-related content. This partnership further strengthens our leadership in the fast growing mobile space and will help drive traffic to our online platforms. It also demonstrates our commitment to executing on one of our core strategies to invest in and capture opportunities to develop mobile offerings for China's auto industry. This is particularly pertinent now as mobile-based offerings are increasingly delivering improved results compared with PC offerings, particularly in terms of effective sales lead generation. In the month of May, over 55% of general sales leads were generated via mobile. Furthermore, based on third party data from iResearch, Bitauto's mobile sites ranked first in terms of monthly active users in the month of April, more than 60% higher than the closest competitor."

Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, added, "Our new mobile content partnership with Baidu will effectively support Bitauto's diversified branding and traffic acquisition strategies. We prudently evaluate potential branding and traffic-generating opportunities against our own ROI criteria to ensure the most effective marketing spend."

First Quarter 2014 Financial Results

• Revenue in the first quarter of 2014 was RMB353.4 million (US$56.9 million), a 47.6% increase from the corresponding period in 2013.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the first quarter of 2014 was RMB1.13 (US$0.18) and RMB1.06 (US$0.17), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "I am pleased to report that we delivered another quarter of strong top and bottom line results in the first quarter of 2014 with year-over-year revenue growth of 47.6% and non-GAAP profit growth of 95.5%. In particular, our bitauto.com advertising and EP platform businesses continued to drive positive results with year-over-year revenue growth of 53.1% and 48.7%, respectively."

"I'm pleased to say that in the first quarter of 2014 our EP platform generated over 12 million general sales leads for our dealer customers and over 47% of sales leads were generated via mobile."

"We remain committed to executing on our three core growth strategies. First, we continue to expand the variety of value-add services on the EP platform and to drive forward our pay-for-performance and pay-for-transaction services. Second, we continue to enhance bitauto.com's brand recognition, with a focus on the branding of our mobile product offerings. Third, we continue to invest in our used car business. We have recently announced a joint venture with Pang Da Group, one of China's leading automotive dealership groups, and Youxin, a leading used car electronic auction service provider in China. We believe this cooperation will strengthen our proprietary used car website, taoche.com, by providing high-quality inventories of available-for-sale used cars and the expertise of our long-term strategic partners."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto added, "The strong year-over-year growth in our top and bottom line results reflects Bitauto's ability to meet the changing needs of China's automakers and dealers. We are also pleased to report a significant year-over-year growth in operating profit of 174.4%, demonstrating the scalability of our core bitauto.com advertising and EP platform businesses and increased operation leverage. Going forward, we look to continue delivering greater operating efficiencies and better margin profiles while maintaining investment in Bitauto's core businesses to further build the foundations for our long-term growth."

Second Quarter 2014 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB480.0 million (US$77.2 million) to RMB500.0 million (US$80.4 million) in the second quarter of 2014, representing a 42.0% to 47.9% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB2.47 (US$0.40) to RMB2.52 (US$0.41) in the second quarter of 2014, representing a 72.7% to 76.2% year-over-year increase.

BEIJING, April 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to establish a joint venture (the "JV"), with Pangda Automobile Trade Co., Ltd ("Pang Da Group"), one of China's leading automotive dealership groups, and Youxin Internet (Beijing) Information Technology Co., Ltd. ("UXIN"), a leading used car electronic auction service provider in China.

The joint venture will solidify the leading position of Bitauto's proprietary used car website, taoche.com, by providing high-quality used car listings and expanding the website's inventory of available-for-sale used cars. Building on Bitauto's existing competitive barriers within the used car ecosystem, the partnership will help grow Bitauto's already leading share of China's nascent used car transaction market. The JV will also help bring much-needed vehicle valuation services to market.

"Bitauto is delighted to cooperate with Pang Da Group and UXIN," said Mr. William Bin Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto. "China's used car market is rapidly growing yet remains under-served. By ramping up the depth and variety of the used car inventory on our taoche.com platform, the joint venture will ultimately help us to better serve the market by providing used car buyers with easy access to the best selection of used cars available on the market when searching for their perfect cars. We are confident this approach will further drive traffic to taoche.com, ensuring it remains the go-to website for used car listings in China. We also expect this JV to strengthen our existing competitive advantages in the used car industry. By building on our long-term used car strategy, we look forward to solidifying our position as a leading player in the used car market and to stay instrumental in driving forward the development of China's used car industry."

Mr. Qinghua Pang, chairman and general manager of Pang Da Group commented, "We are pleased to be partnering with Bitauto and UXIN to further promote our auto dealers and ultimately, support the development of their businesses. As a leading network of auto dealerships, we have access to a vast pool of used vehicle information. This joint venture will provide our auto dealerships with more effective marketing activities and help promote our customers' used car inventory to a broader group of potential buyers."

Mr. Chris Kun Dai, chairman and chief executive officer of UXIN added, "This is an exciting partnership and one which we are extremely pleased to be involved in. The shift towards online used car sales is growing and our partnership with Bitauto and Pang Da Group promotes this trend. Through the joint venture, we look forward to bringing our leading online auction platform and technology to more auto dealers. Helping dealers enhance their online used car sales services will not only improve their revenue but also push forward new developments in China's online used car market."

Fourth Quarter 2013 Financial Results

• Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2013 was RMB483.6 million (US$79.9 million), a 36.3% increase from the corresponding period in 2012
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the fourth quarter of 2013 was RMB2.58 (US$0.43) and RMB2.41 (US$0.40), respectively. Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in fiscal year 2013 was RMB6.63 (US$1.10) and RMB6.27 (US$1.04), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer and chairman of Bitauto commented, "I am pleased to announce we delivered yet another set of healthy top and bottom line results in the fourth quarter with year-over-year revenue growth of 36.3% and non-GAAP profit growth of 58.4%. Our ability to maintain a sustainable rate of growth throughout 2013 helped to drive strong full-year results with revenue growth of 36.2% and non-GAAP profit growth of 77.3%."

"Our focus remains on providing car buyers with the most informative online products and services and delivering our auto maker and dealer customers with effective digital marketing solutions." continued Mr. Li. "I'm pleased to say that in the fourth quarter of 2013 our EP platform generated over 11 million general sales leads for our dealer customers and advertising revenue from bitauto.com reached a new high. In 2013 we also significantly increased investment in our mobile offerings in order to deliver increasingly easy-to-use vehicle purchasing tools to car buyers. We are pleased with the exceptional results we've seen from our mobile offering. In 2013 alone, over 15 million users activated our mobile apps, traffic to our mobile sites increased significantly and in December 2013, over 40% of sales leads were generated via mobile.

"In 2014, we will continue to invest in our mobile offerings to ensure we continue to respond to the rapid trend among users towards mobile and to maintain our leading position. To support the development of our key business segments, we will continue to execute on our three core growth strategies. First, we will expand the range of value-added offerings available on our EP platform including new pay for performance sale products designed to increase the average spend per dealer customer on the EP platform. Second, we will continue to build bitauto.com's brand recognition and actively build brand awareness around its mobile offerings. Third, we will continue to invest in our used car business. In the first half of this year, we will launch our leading used car vehicle valuation products in collaboration with KBB and CADA, which will help further strengthen our competitive advantage and raise market entry barriers for our competitors. We are confident these strategies will build solid foundations for Bitauto's future long-term growth."

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto added, "Our strong full-year growth in both revenue and non-GAAP profit demonstrates the success of our established core growth strategies. In 2013 we remained China's largest internet auto vertical business in terms of revenue demonstrating our ability to provide highly effective platforms for our automaker and auto dealer customers as their demand increasingly shifts to targeted online marketing services. As we move into 2014, our focus remains on expanding the range and availability of our product and service offerings via mobile and PC devices, and on further building brand awareness."

First Quarter 2014 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB326.0 million (US$53.9 million) to RMB336.0 million (US$55.5 million) in the first quarter of fiscal year 2014, representing a 36.1% to 40.3% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB0.85 (US$0.14) to RMB0.90(US$0.15) in the first quarter of 2014, representing a 51.8% to 60.7% year-over-year increase.

BEIJING, December 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced the follow-on public offering of an aggregate of 2,749,200 American Depositary Shares ("ADSs") by the Company and a selling shareholder was priced at US$30.00 per ADS. The Company will be offering 1,264,855 ADSs and the selling shareholder will be offering 1,484,345 ADSs. Each ADS represents one ordinary share of the Company. In connection with this offering, the Company has granted the underwriters a 30-day overallotment option to purchase up to an aggregate of 410,800 additional ADSs from the Company at the public offering price of US$30.00 per ADS.

The proceeds to the Company, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions, will be approximatelyUS$36.1 million, or US$47.9 million if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option in full. Bitauto will not receive any proceeds from the sale of the ADSs by the selling shareholder. The underwriters of the offering are Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc, and Citigroup Global Markets Inc.

IRVINE, Calif., Nov. 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Kelley Blue Book www.kbb.com, The Trusted Resource^® and leading provider of new and used car information today announced a joint venture with Bitauto Holdings Limited (NYSE: BITA), leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, and China Automobile Dealers Association (CADA).

"Through our strategic partnership with Bitauto and the China Automobile Dealers Association, and in recognition of the rapidly growing, emerging China automotive market, Kelley Blue Book will leverage its 87-year history of trusted, vehicle values and automotive expertise to provide vehicle valuation and pricing information to the China market," said Jared Rowe, president of Kelley Blue Book. "These values will help Chinese consumers feel confident they are making well informed decisions with values leveraging KBB.com's expertise in values and fair pricing."

The new joint venture will operate as a Web-based and mobile product in China, providing comprehensive, up-to-date used-vehicle values for consumers, auto manufacturers, car dealers, finance and insurance companies, and other automotive-related companies. KBB.com's venerable used-car values expertise will be integrated with Bitauto's deep local Chinese market understanding and solid used-car customer base, and CADA's authoritative position and its exclusive access to extensive data on China's used-car market. With this joint venture, Kelley Blue Book can now extend its relationships with automakers onto a more global platform.

"Bitauto is delighted to partner with Kelley Blue Book and the China Automobile Dealers Association to bring innovative vehicle valuations to China's used-car market," said William Bin Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto. "We are confident these values will become the starting point for consumers and dealers seeking used-vehicle pricing information."

"We wanted to provide greater transparency and confidence for consumers and the valuation products that are being jointly developed will deliver on this," said Mr. Jinjun Shen, executive vice president and general secretary from CADA. "These innovative new products will provide comprehensive vehicle valuations to meet the needs of a wide range of Chinese auto buyers and sellers."

Third quarter 2013 Financial Results

• Revenue of RMB378.2 million (US$61.8 million) for the third quarter of 2013, representing a 36.8% increase from the corresponding period in 2012
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the third quarter of 2013 amounted to RMB1.96(US$0.32) and RMB1.86 (US$0.30), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer of Bitauto said, "I am pleased to announce healthy year-over-year revenue growth of 36.8% and non-GAAP profit growth of 112.4% in the third quarter. Both revenue and non-GAAP diluted profit per ADS exceeded our company guidance. In the third quarter, our core bitauto.com advertising and EP platform businesses continued to deliver stable growth of 42.6% and 40.5%, respectively.

"In the third quarter, we continued to execute on our three core growth strategies. Our sustained investment in creating the industry's leading mobile offering remained critical in accelerating the trend toward mobile. In addition, Bitauto's mobile applications, in particular those providing car listing and pricing information, are gaining popularity among consumers throughout the year, benefiting from our sustained investment in creating the industry's leading mobile offerings.

"In the long term, we will remain focused on providing consumers the best mobile experience and delivering more cost-effective general sales leads to our dealer customers. We will continue to invest in and expand the range of mobile offerings on our EP platform to help dealers better manage their businesses."

Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, commented, "We are encouraged by our sustained growth in revenue and non-GAAP profit in the third quarter. We will continue to invest in the development of our key products and services and grow brand recognition in order to deliver sustainable long-term growth."

Second Quarter 2013 Financial Results

• Revenue in the second quarter of 2013 was RMB338.0 million (US$55.1 million), a 36.5% increase from the corresponding period in 2012.
• Gross profit in the second quarter of 2013 was RMB255.2 million (US$41.6 million), a 44.9% increase from the corresponding period in 2012.
• Operating profit in the second quarter of 2013 was RMB50.8 million (US$8.3 million), a 64.3% increase from the corresponding period in 2012.
• IFRS profit in the second quarter of 2013 was RMB55.8 million (US$9.1 million), a 113.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2012. Basic and diluted profit per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, in the second quarter of 2013 amounted to RMB1.41 (US$0.23) and RMB1.35 (US$0.22), respectively.
• Non-GAAP profit in the second quarter of 2013 was RMB59.1 million (US$9.6 million), a 105.8% increase from the corresponding period in 2012. Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the second quarter of 2013 amounted to RMB1.50 (US$0.24) and RMB1.43 (US$0.23), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer of Bitauto commented, "I am pleased to announce a healthy year-over-year revenue growth of 36.5% in the second quarter with both revenue and non-GAAP diluted profit per ADS exceeding our company guidance.

"Our core businesses, the bitauto.com advertising business and the EP platform business, remained our strongest revenue drivers with a year-over-year revenue growth of 45.7% and 45.2%, respectively," Mr. Li added. "We are encouraged by these results, which reflect the continuing ability of our products and services to respond to the changing needs of automakers and auto dealers."

Mr. Li continued, "We continue to execute on our core growth strategies. We remain focused on increasing subscriber utilization of the EP platform's extensive functionalities and further enhancing our service and product offerings, extending and deepening recognition of the Bitauto brands and investing in our used car business."

Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, commented, "We were encouraged by the strong growth in both revenue and profitability in the second quarter. We will continue to invest in product development and brand building activities in order to build on the inherent scalability of the Bitauto businesses and deliver sustainable long-term growth."

Third Quarter 2013 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB355.0 million (US$57.8 million) to RMB365.0 million (US$59.5 million) in the third quarter of fiscal year 2013, representing a 28.4% to 32.0% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB1.51 (US$0.25) to RMB1.56 (US$0.25) in the third quarter of 2013.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

First Quarter 2013 Financial Results

• Revenue in the first quarter of 2013 was RMB239.5 million (US$38.6 million), a 34.6% increase from the corresponding period in 2012.
• Gross profit in the first quarter of 2013 was RMB185.0 million (US$29.8 million), a 35.3% increase from the corresponding period in 2012.
• Operating profit in the first quarter of 2013 was RMB19.7 million (US$3.2 million), a 1.3% increase from the corresponding period in 2012.
• IFRS profit in the first quarter of 2013 was RMB19.7 million (US$3.2 million), a 25.6% increase from the corresponding period in 2012.
• Non-GAAP profit in the first quarter of 2013 was RMB23.2 million (US$3.7 million), a 29.1% increase from the corresponding period in 2012.
• Non-GAAP profit in the first quarter of 2013 was RMB23.2 million (US$3.7 million), a 29.1% increase from the corresponding period in 2012. Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the first quarter of 2013 amounted toRMB0.59 (US$0.09) and RMB0.56 (US$0.09), respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer of Bitauto commented, "I am pleased to announce that we saw healthy year-over-year revenue growth of 34.6% in the first quarter, in line with our guidance. To best reflect developments in Bitauto's business, we are now reporting four business segments: the bitauto.com advertising business, the EP platform business, the taoche.com business and the digital marketing solutions business."

"Our new EP platform business segment experienced encouraging revenue growth of 45.9% compared to the corresponding period last year," Mr. Li added. "The bitauto.com advertising business was our strongest revenue driver with year-over-year revenue growth of 56.8%. The rapid growth of our core businesses reflects the continuing ability of bitauto.com advertising and EP platform to respond to the needs of automakers and auto dealers."

Mr. Li continued, "Looking forward, we plan to continue executing on our three core growth strategies. First, we will continue to enhance the services and products available on the EP platform, and increase subscribers' use of the platform's extensive functionalities. Second, we will continue to raise awareness of the Bitauto brands. Third, we will continue to invest in our used car business. We are confident this approach will help us deliver a solid performance going forward."

Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto, commented, "In the first quarter, we continued to invest in service and product development, expand our sales network and increase marketing and promotional activities. While this impacted our operating profit for the first quarter, we are confident that these investments will help us build on the inherent scalability of the Bitauto businesses and deliver sustainable, long-term growth."

Second Quarter 2013 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB325.0 million (US$52.3 million) to RMB335.0 million(US$53.9 million) in the second quarter of fiscal year 2013, representing a 31.2% to 35.3% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB1.23 (US$0.20) to RMB1.28 (US$0.21) in the second quarter of 2013.

This forecast takes into consideration seasonality factors in Bitauto's business, and excludes any impact of foreign currency fluctuation. It reflects management's current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

BEIJING, November 2, 2012 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that certain existing pre-IPO shareholders of the Company entered into definitive agreements with AutoTrader Group, Inc., operator of the largest digital automotive marketplace in the United States.

Pursuant to these agreements, AutoTrader Group has agreed to purchase 9 million ordinary shares, representing an approximately 21.8% stake in the Company, from the selling shareholders for a total purchase price of US$58.5 million in a private transaction. Concurrently with AutoTrader Group's signing of the definitive agreements, Bitauto's senior management team, namely, Mr. William Bin Li, chairman and chief executive officer, Mr. Jingning Shao, president, Mr. Andy Xuan Zhang, chief financial officer, and Mr. Weihai Qu, senior vice president, also entered into definitive agreements with a pre-IPO shareholder of the Company pursuant to which they agreed to purchase an approximately 2.4% stake in the Company from the selling shareholder for a total purchase price of US$6.5 million. The senior management team funded the purchase through a four-year term loan from AutoTrader Group.

The share purchase and sale transactions are expected to close in November 2012, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

"We are delighted that AutoTrader Group will become an important strategic investor in Bitauto," said Mr. William Bin Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto. "AutoTrader Group's leadership as operator of the largest digital automotive marketplace in the United States makes them an ideal partner for Bitauto. By bringing together leaders in the two largest automobile markets in the world, I am confident that this cooperation will create significant cooperative opportunities and drive value for both companies in the long term."

"AutoTrader Group's investment in Bitauto aligns our group of companies with China's leading online automotive site," said Chip Perry, chief executive officer of AutoTrader Group. "This investment strengthens our portfolio of companies and establishes the foundation for AutoTrader's future growth and learning opportunities in emerging markets."

Second Quarter 2012 Results

• Revenue in the second quarter of 2012 was RMB247.6 million (US$39.0 million), a 58.9% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• Gross profit in the second quarter of 2012 was RMB176.1 million (US$27.7 million), a 66.7% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• Operating profit in the second quarter of 2012 was RMB30.9 million (US$4.9 million), a 59.7% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• IFRS profit in the second quarter of 2012 was RMB26.2 million (US$4.1 million), a 13.0% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• Non-GAAP profit in the second quarter of 2012 was RMB28.7 million (US$4.5 million), a 6.6% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• The Company had 7,846 subscribers to Easypass, its online marketing platform for new cars, and 1,270 customers of Transtar, its online marketing platform for used cars, during the six months ended June 30, 2012, compared to 4,451 and 1,440 respectively, in the corresponding period in 2011. This represents an annual increase of 76.3% in the number of Easypass subscribers and an annual decrease of 11.8% in the number of Transtar customers.

"We maintained a healthy pace of growth in the second quarter, with revenue growing 58.9% year-on-year," commented Mr. William Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto. "We continue to benefit as auto makers and dealers allocate more of their online marketing spend to promotional activities. This demonstrates how Bitauto's products and services are continuing to meet the needs of potential car buyers, auto makers and dealers."

Mr. Li added, "In the second half of 2012, we will continue to focus on our three core development strategies. Firstly, we will soon launch our enhanced online marketing and CRM platform, EP, and transition our Easypass new car dealer customers onto this new platform. Secondly, we will continue to invest in brand building. Finally, we will continue to strengthen our used car listings website, taoche.com. We are confident that these strategies will strengthen our industry-leading position and drive long-term growth."

"Our commitment to building strong brand recognition and improving customer experience across our business segments continues to generate positive results," said Andy Zhang, chief financial officer of Bitauto. "Our improved top line performance drove an increase in operating profit of 59.7% from the corresponding period in 2011. We continue to invest in the core growth drivers of our business and this is clearly generating results. Going forward, we will maintain our focus on managing operating efficiency to ensure sustainable profitability."

Recent Business Updates

• The share repurchase program announced on August 12, 2011, which authorized the Company to repurchase up to US$10.0 million worth of its American Depositary Shares ("ADSs") within 12 months, has now been completed. As of June 30, 2012, the Company had repurchased 1,908,180 ADSs in aggregate for a total consideration of US$9.98 million, inclusive of transaction charges. The Company will not make additional repurchases under this share purchase program due to the expiration of the program.
• During the second quarter, the Company made a strategic investment of approximately US$3.0 million in Car King, a leading Shanghai-based used car hypermarket. The investment is expected to enable the Company to better understand advertising and promotional trends in the used car sector.

Third Quarter 2012 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB250.0 million (US$39.4 million) to RMB260.0 million (US$40.9 million) in the third quarter of fiscal year 2012, representing a 41.5% to 47.1% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB0.74 (US$0.12) to RMB0.79 (US$0.12) in the third quarter of 2012.

First Quarter 2012 Highlights

• Revenue in the first quarter of 2012 was RMB178.0 million (US$28.3 million), a 62.3% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• Gross profit in the first quarter of 2012 was RMB136.7 million (US$21.7 million), a 90.6% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• Operating profit in the first quarter of 2012 was RMB19.4 million (US$3.1 million), a 311.0% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• IFRS profit in the first quarter of 2012 was RMB15.7 million (US$2.5 million), a 111.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• Non-GAAP profit in the first quarter of 2012 was RMB18.0 million (US$2.9 million), a 40.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2011.
• During the first quarter of 2012, the Company had 6,889 subscribers to Easypass, its online marketing platform for new cars, and 1,059 customers of Transtar, its online marketing platform for used cars, compared to 3,493 and 1,137, respectively, in the corresponding period in 2011. This represents an annual increase of 97.2% in the number of Easypass subscribers and an annual decrease of 6.9% in the number of Transtar customers.

Recent Business Updates

Under the share repurchase program announced on August 12, 2011, which authorized the Company to repurchase up to US$10.0 million worth of its American Depositary Shares ("ADSs"), Bitauto repurchased an additional 1,445,550 ADSs for approximately US$7.30 million, inclusive of transaction charges, during the first quarter of 2012. As of March 31, 2012, the Company has repurchased 1,900,556 ADSs in aggregate for a total consideration of US$9.95 million, inclusive of transaction charges.

As of March 31, 2012, the Company had a total of 41,640,890 ordinary shares, with 16,866,793 ADSs issued and outstanding. Each ADS represents one ordinary share of the Company. Basic and diluted per ADS figures for the first quarter of 2012 were calculated using a weighted average of 40,731,002 and 41,456,479 ADSs, respectively.

Mr. William Li, chief executive officer of Bitauto, commented, "I am pleased to report another quarter of strong and sustained growth for Bitauto, with revenue growing by 62.3%. This robust performance provides a solid foundation for the year ahead. Two trends in online marketing spending in the auto industry are in our favour. First, online marketing still accounts for a relatively small proportion of overall marketing spend in the auto industry, which indicates that there is ample room for further growth. Second, as auto makers and dealers compete more intensively for auto sales, more online marketing budgets are being allocated to sales promotions. This syncs with Bitauto's competitive advantages in delivering quality products and services. As we work to take advantage of these trends, our efforts to develop products, improve service quality, and enhance awareness of the Bitauto brand are strengthening our profitability and enabling us to gain further recognition among auto makers, dealers and potential car buyers in China."

Mr. Li continued, "In 2012, we will continue to execute on our three core growth drivers. First, in terms of product and service quality, we will continue to develop our new EP business unit to provide our dealer customers with a fully integrated "one-stop" digital sales, marketing and CRM platform. Second, in terms of brand building, we will focus on building awareness of our websites among potential car buyers in China. And third, we will continue to develop our used car listings website, taoche.com. We are confident that this approach will ensure Bitauto retains its industry-leading position and will lay a solid foundation for long-term growth."

Mr. Andy Zhang, Bitauto's chief financial officer, added, "Our strong performance in the first quarter demonstrates how the inherent scalability of our business is increasingly apparent. With traffic to bitauto.com and taoche.com, formerly ucar.cn, growing strongly, auto makers and dealers are allocating more of their budgets to our sales and marketing platforms. In 2012, we are committed to investing in the three core growth drivers and we are confident that this approach will drive further revenue growth in the coming quarters."

Fourth Quarter 2011 Results

• Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2011 was RMB227.7 million (US$36.2 million), a 43.4% increase from the corresponding period in 2010. Revenue in fiscal year 2011 was RMB670.0 million (US$106.4 million), a 46.2% increase from 2010.
• Gross profit in the fourth quarter of 2011 was RMB155.6 million (US$24.7 million), a 43.6% increase from the corresponding period in 2010. Gross profit in fiscal year 2011 was RMB456.2 million (US$72.5 million), a 47.4% increase from 2010.
• Operating profit in the fourth quarter of 2011 was RMB25.2 million (US$4.0 million), a 23.5% decrease from the corresponding period in 2010. Operating profit in fiscal year 2011 was RMB71.8 million (US$11.4 million), a 6.2% increase from 2010.
• IFRS profit in the fourth quarter of 2011 was RMB32.4 million (US$5.1 million), as compared to an IFRS loss of RMB435.1 million (US$69.1 million) in the corresponding period in 2010. IFRS profit in fiscal year 2011 was RMB87.2 million (US$13.9 million) as compared to an IFRS loss of RMB1.27 billion (US$202.3 million) in 2010.
• Non-GAAP profit from continuing operations in the fourth quarter of 2011 was RMB37.3 million (US$5.9 million), a 0.9% increase from the corresponding period in 2010. Non-GAAP profit from continuing operations in fiscal year 2011 was RMB105.9 million (US$16.8 million), a 50.5% increase from 2010.
• In 2011, the Company had 6,302 subscribers to Easypass, its online marketing platform for new cars, and 1,759 customers of Transtar, its online marketing platform for used cars, compared to 3,512 and 1,409, respectively, in 2010. This represents an annual increase of 79.4% in the number of Easypass subscribers and an annual increase of 24.8% in the number of Transtar customers.

"In 2012, we expect our top line to increasingly benefit from our investment in product optimization and brand equity. We also expect operating and net margins to improve as we take advantage of economies of scale in our business and continue our prudent approach to financial management."

First Quarter 2012 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB150.0 million (US$23.8 million) to RMB155.0 million (US$24.6 million) in the first quarter of fiscal year 2012, representing a 36.8% to 41.4% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB0.41 (US$0.07) to RMB0.43 (US$0.07) in the first quarter of 2012.

Third Quarter 2011 Results

• Revenue in the third quarter of 2011 was RMB176.7 million ($27.7 million), a 46.5% increase from the corresponding period in 2010.
• Non-GAAP profit from continuing operations in the third quarter of 2011 was RMB28.9 million ($4.5 million), a 33.8% increase from the corresponding period in 2010. Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the third quarter of 2011 amounted to RMB0.70 ($0.11) and RMB0.68 ($0.11), respectively.

"I am pleased to report that in the third quarter Bitauto continued to grow at a robust rate," said William Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto. "We recorded impressive year-on-year revenue growth of 46.5% as more of China's auto makers and auto dealers turned to bitauto.com and ucar.cn as their online marketing platforms of choice. A particularly important growth driver was the rapid increase in the number of auto dealers subscribing to our Easypass online marketing platform for new car listings. Easypass had 5,446 subscribers during the nine months ended September 30, 2011, which is nearly double the number of subscribers in the same period a year ago. Our digital marketing solutions business, CIG, has also had a strong quarter with revenue growth of almost 35% year-on-year, which was in part driven by new customers acquired in 2011."

Mr. Li added, "We are confident that Bitauto will continue to grow through successful execution of our strategy to build our brand, enhance product and service quality, and expand our sales and customer service network. We have made important progress in each of these areas so far this year, and remain focused on sustaining these efforts for the remainder of 2011 and beyond."

Andy Zhang, Bitauto's chief financial officer, commented, "At this stage in Bitauto's development, we believe it is vital to establish a solid foundation for sustainable long-term growth. Our recent investments in brand awareness are an important part of this effort, and are already having a positive impact. Over the last quarter, bitauto.com recorded a noticeable increase in traffic and brand awareness since our marketing partnership with Baidu was rolled out. Excluding costs related to this partnership, growth in our operating profit for the third quarter would have outpaced growth in revenue. We also strengthened our client service team and invested in research and development for our digital marketing solutions business in the third quarter. We are confident these investments will increasingly contribute to our profitability in the coming quarters."

Fourth Quarter 2011 Outlook

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB210.0 million ($32.9 million) to RMB215.0 million ($33.7 million) in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2011, representing a 32.2% to 35.3% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB0.79 ($0.12) in the fourth quarter of 2011.

We believe that our current cash and anticipated cash flows from our operations will be sufficient to meet our anticipated cash needs, including our cash needs for working capital and capital expenditures, for at least the next 12 months. We may, however, require additional cash due to changing business conditions or other future developments, including any investments or acquisitions we may decide to pursue.

BEIJING, June 1, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China's fast-growing automotive industry, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Baidu, Inc. ("Baidu") (NASDAQ: BIDU), the leading Chinese language Internet search provider, to be the exclusive supplier of auto-related content for Aladdin, Baidu's Open Data Platform ("the Agreement").

Pursuant to the year-long Agreement, effective from June 1, 2011, Bitauto will provide selected auto-related content, including auto listings, pictures, reviews, and dealer information to enhance Aladdin-enabled search results, which include real-time, dynamic and interactive content alongside static search results. When Baidu users search for auto-related information, Baidu will exclusively display relevant content provided by Bitauto in the Aladdin-enabled section of the search results page.

William Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "We are delighted to be the exclusive provider of auto-related content for Baidu’s Aladdin initiative. In addition to helping Baidu further enhance the search experience for its users, we expect that Bitauto will see two major benefits from this co-operation. First, this quick and easy way of finding Bitauto’s high quality content will increase traffic and strengthen our brand recognition among Internet users. We have already seen a noticeable increase in traffic to our bitauto.com site in beta trials. Second, selected information provided by our Easypass subscribers will be displayed directly on Baidu’s search results page, which will enhance the competitive advantage of our Easypass platform."

Haoyu Shen, senior vice president of business operations at Baidu, commented, "Baidu is extremely focused on providing the best possible search experience for Chinese Internet users by finding new and engaging ways to deliver professional and instantaneous search results. Given the rapid growth of the auto market in China, we have seen a significant number of users turning to Baidu for auto-related information. By cooperating with Bitauto to enrich relevant search results, we can ensure that users not only find static information about a particular auto model, but also the most up-to-date pricing information and photos for that model, details of dealers nearby, recent reviews from users, and so on, right there on the search results page. This is a great example of how we work with leading third-party content providers in China to successfully execute our Box Computing vision."

In connection with direct and indirect expenses related to this Agreement, Bitauto has revised its previously announced earnings outlook for non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS for the second quarter of 2011. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB0.59 (US$0.09(1)) in the second quarter of 2011. The Company had previously announced that it expected to generate revenue in the range of RMB145.0 million (US$22.1 million) to RMB150.0 million (US$22.9 million) in the second quarter of 2011, and that non-GAAP diluted profit per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, would be approximately RMB0.70 ($0.11).

First Quarter Results:

• Revenue in the first quarter of 2011 was RMB109.6 million ($16.7 million), a 56.9% increase from the corresponding period in 2010.
• Gross profit in the first quarter of 2011 was RMB71.7 million ($11.0 million), a 59.2% increase from the corresponding period in 2010.
• Operating profit in the first quarter of 2011 was RMB4.7 million ($0.7 million), a 4,585.1% increase from the corresponding period in 2010.
• IFRS profit in the first quarter of 2011 was RMB7.4 million ($1.1 million), as compared to an IFRS loss of RMB82.8 million ($12.6 million) in the corresponding period in 2010.
• Non-GAAP profit from continuing operations in the first quarter of 2011 was RMB12.8 million ($2.0 million), a 1,084.8% increase from the corresponding period in 2010

"We are pleased to report strong year-over-year growth in both the top and bottom lines," said William Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto. "While a number of factors have slowed the growth rate of China’s auto market in 2011, Bitauto has nevertheless delivered first quarter performance in line with our strong results in full year 2010, and this achievement underlines the competitive strengths of our products and services. Looking ahead, we believe that the three core drivers of our success will continue to power growth. First, as the slowing pace of growth in auto sales intensifies competition in the industry, auto makers and dealers are increasingly incentivized to raise spending on advertising and promotional activities, which drives growth in the auto advertising sector. Second, even though the Internet is already an important channel for car buyers in China to find auto model and pricing information, online marketing only accounts for a small percentage of overall auto marketing spend. And since the cost effectiveness of online marketing platforms is more attractive in a competitive market environment, we believe that the industry players will allocate a greater percentage of their marketing budget to the Internet. And thirdly, our ongoing progress in developing new products, enhancing brand equity and expanding our nationwide sales network enable us to further solidify our competitive advantages. For these reasons, we remain confident in our growth potential for the coming years."

• Non-GAAP basic and diluted profit per ADS in the first quarter of 2011 amounted to RMB0.31 ($0.05) and RMB0.30 ($0.05), respectively

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB 145.0 million ($22.1 million) to RMB150.0 million ($22.9 million) in the second quarter of 2011, representing a 33.3% to 37.9% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted profit per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB 0.70 ($0.11), in the second quarter of 2011.

 

　

　

Fourth Quarter Highlights:

• Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2010 was RMB158.9 million ($24.1 million), a 62.7% increase from the corresponding period in 2009. Revenue in fiscal year 2010 was RMB458.1 million ($69.4 million), a 56.2% increase from 2009. The increases in revenue were attributed to the growth of all three of the company's business lines.
• Gross profit in the fourth quarter of 2010 was RMB108.4 million ($16.4 million), an 81.9% increase from the corresponding period in 2009.
• Gross profit in fiscal year 2010 was RMB309.4 million ($46.9 million), a 65.0% increase from 2009.
• Operating profit in the fourth quarter of 2010 was RMB33.0 million ($5.0 million), a 127.3% increase from the corresponding period in 2009.
• Operating profit in fiscal year 2010 was RMB67.6 million ($10.2 million), a 49.6% increase from 2009.
• Non-GAAP profit from continuing operations in the fourth quarter of 2010 was RMB36.9 million ($5.6 million), a 175.0% increase from the corresponding period in 2009;
• non-GAAP profit from continuing operations in fiscal year 2010 was RMB70.3 million ($10.7million), a 68.3% increase from 2009.

"2010 was yet another year of strong growth for Bitauto. Following our successful NYSE listing in the fourth quarter, we are excited to close the year reporting stellar financial results," said William Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Bitauto. "Last year China set global all-time records for both the number of new automobiles sold and the number of Internet users. Bitauto's well established position as the clear industry leader, combined with our unique business model, ensured that we were ideally placed to take advantage of these trends across our three business segments – our bitauto.com business, our ucar.cn business, and our digital marketing solutions business."

"Looking to 2011, we believe that the auto industry in China will face challenges, as government subsidies to promote auto sales are phased out and major cities such as Beijing introduce traffic control policies that will restrict new auto purchases. While the phenomenal growth rates in car sales of last year are unlikely to be repeated, we nevertheless expect that strong demand from lower tier cities will drive sustainable growth for the year ahead and beyond."

Bitauto currently expects to generate revenue in the range of RMB96.0 million ($14.5 million) to RMB99.0 million ($15.0 million) in the first quarter of 2011, representing a 37.4% to 41.7% year-over-year increase. Bitauto currently expects non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, to be approximately RMB0.27 ($0.04) in the first quarter of 2011.

Bitauto Holdings Limited recently completes Initial Public Offering

Company Snapshot:

A leading provider of Internet content and marketing services for China’s fast-growing automotive industry.

Industry Snapshot:

China’s automobile market has experienced, and is expected to continue to experience, significant growth driven by increasing urbanization, continued macroeconomic growth and rising personal disposable income across the nation. In 2009, China overtook the U.S. to become the world’s largest automobile market based on domestic sales volume, according to China Automotive Dealers Association, or CADA. At the same time, China’s automobile market is still underpenetrated as compared to developed and certain other developing countries. According to J.D. Power and Associates, or J.D. Power, China’s personal automobile density, defined as the number of passenger vehicles per 1,000 persons of driving age, was 35 in 2009, significantly lower than that of the United States (985), Western Europe (611), Japan (541), Russia (277) and Brazil (142).

Use Of proceeds:

• approximately $25.0 million of the net proceeds for product development;
• approximately $25.0 million of the net proceeds for sales and marketing;
• the balance for general corporate purposes, including working capital, approximately $3.0 million to pay an RMB20 million loan drawn from a revolving line of credit facility at an annual interest rate of 5.31% that will mature on April 29, 2011, and potential acquisitions, although we have not identified any potential acquisition targets at this time.

Underwriter:

• Citi
• UBS Investment Bank
• Oppenheimer & Co.
• Lazard Capital Markets

Offering price: $12.00

Post IPO Share Calculation: (Using a 1 to 1 Ordinary to ADS conversion ratio).

• 33,344,530: Pre IPO fully diluted share count used in EPS calculation including conversion of convertible promissory notes.
• 10,600,000: Newly issued ADS shares (1,600,000 of these shares from shareholders).  
• 1,590,000: Underwriter Over-allotments ADS shares 
• : Miscellaneous

GeoTeam® best effort calculation of total post IPO ADS count to be used in EPS calculations, assuming full conversions and a Ordinary to ADS conversion ratio of 1 to 1:  43,934,530

Financial Snapshot:

• Non-GAAP net income of $7.0 million
• Traling non-GAAP EPS of $0.21
• Trailing P/E of 57

Consolidated Statements		For the Year Ended December 31,																For the Nine Months Ended September 30,
of Comprehensive Income Data		2007				2008				2009								2009				2010
										RMB				$				RMB				RMB				$
		RMB				RMB
		(In thousands)
Continuing Operations
Revenue			127,699				238,978				293,313				43,840				195,684				299,252				44,728
Cost of revenue			(44,502	)			(74,224	)			(105,746	)			(15,805	)			(67,712	)			(98,241	)			(14,684	)
Gross profit			83,197				164,754				187,567				28,035				127,972				201,011				30,044
Selling and administrative expenses(1)			(67,589	)			(99,951	)			(125,268	)			(18,723	)			(85,772	)			(145,368	)			(21,728	)
Product development expenses			(4,644	)			(14,437	)			(17,090	)			(2,554	)			(11,491	)			(20,976	)			(3,135	)
Operating profit			10,964				50,366				45,209				6,758				30,709				34,667				5,181
Other income			1,933				4,180				595				89				550				1,686				252
Other expenses			(43	)			(1,267	)			(1,168	)			(175	)			(934	)			(943	)			(141	)
Changes in fair value of derivative component of convertible preference shares			(155,202	)			50,295				(33,305	)			(4,978	)			(9,769	)			(806,934	)			(120,609	)
Changes in fair value of convertible promissory notes			—				(8,709	)			680				102				680				—				—
Interest income			743				636				373				56				309				404				60
Interest expense			—				—				—				—				—				(457	)			(68	)
Finance costs on convertible preference shares			(4,252	)			(10,748	)			(14,917	)			(2,230	)			(12,502	)			(8,037	)			(1,201	)
(Loss)/profit before tax from continuing operations			(145,857	)			84,753				(2,533	)			(378	)			9,043				(779,614	)			(116,526	)
Income tax expense			(127	)			(439	)			(3,503	)			(524	)			(2,480	)			(7,245	)			(1,083	)
(Loss)/profit from continuing operations			(145,984	)			84,314				(6,036	)			(902	)			6,563				(786,859	)			(117,609	)
(Loss)/profit for the year(2)			(174,416	)			36,416				(60,348	)			(9,020	)			(20,148	)			(838,169	)			(125,277	)
Total comprehensive (loss)/income(3)			(164,395	)			54,742				(60,150	)			(8,990	)			(19,994	)			(822,702	)			(122,966	)
(Loss)/profit per share from continuing operations attributable to ordinary shareholders
Basic			(6.86	)			3.16				(0.21	)			(0.03	)			0.23				(24.45	)			(3.65	)
Diluted			(6.86	)			1.64				(0.21	)			(0.03	)			0.15				(24.45	)			(3.65	)

Other Financial Data:
Non-GAAP profit from continuing operations(4)			15,613				54,270				41,798				6,248				28,373				33,425				4,996