Eric Li, founder of Chinese auto conglomerate Geely Holding, will step down as chair of its flagship unit Geely Auto, handing the role to executive director An Conghui in a major management reshuffle aimed at long-term succession planning.
Li, who founded Geely four decades ago, will remain chair of Geely Holding Group, the Hong Kong-listed company said in a stock market filing. His departure will allow him to devote more time to other business commitments, the filing said.
Under the changes, which take effect on Tuesday (Aug 18), executive director Gan Jiayue will take over the CEO role at Geely Auto from Gui Shengyue, who will become vice chair.
“The board believes that Gan’s extensive management experience and industry expertise will enable him to lead the Group’s operations effectively and support the execution of the Group’s long-term strategic objectives,” Geely Auto said in the filing.
The reshuffle comes as Geely Holding, a major competitor to Chinese top EV maker BYD and parent of Volvo Cars, Polestar, Geely Auto, Zeekr and Lynk & Co, grapples with intense competition in the world’s largest auto market, while accelerating its overseas expansion.
An said on Monday that Geely Auto’s long-term strategy was to generate two-thirds of its sales from overseas markets.
Reuters
