Tuhu signs conditional A$403 million deal to buy Continental's mycar Tyre & Auto network

The conditional agreement announced on 24 September

TUHU Car Inc. (stock code 09690.HK) announced before trading hours on 24 September 2026 that it had entered a share sale and purchase agreement to conditionally acquire the entire issued share capital of Conti Trade Australia Pty Ltd, comprising 177,000,000 ordinary shares. According to the announcement details reported by NewTimeSpace, the purchaser is Tuhu Car (Hong Kong) Limited, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Tuhu, while the vendor is Continental Global Holding Netherlands B.V., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Continental AG. Conti Trade owns and operates the mycar Tyre & Auto network, described in the announcement as one of Australia's largest tyre, automotive service and repair chains. ⁶

BigGo Finance and Investing.com also reported the agreement on 24 September, with Investing.com stating the deal values the Australian tyre retail, vehicle servicing and automotive repair operation at an enterprise value of A$403 million, equivalent to €250 million. Both parties described the transaction as an agreement rather than a completed sale: BigGo Finance said Tuhu conditionally agreed to acquire all issued share capital of Conti Trade, and upon completion the target would become an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Tuhu with its results consolidated into the group's accounts. ⁷³

On 25 September, Yahoo Finance, carrying Just Auto reporting, confirmed the deal is based on an enterprise value of A$403m (US$282.9m) and remains subject to regulatory approvals, while Automotive World reported the enterprise value as AU$403m (US$265m) in its own conversion — a different US dollar figure attributed to that outlet. Tyre News, in its 24 September report on the agreement, noted that the A$278.33 million estimated cash payment at completion remains subject to post-completion adjustment and should not be treated as the final purchase price. ²⁵⁴

What changes hands: the mycar network and its financials

The target group operates 279 stores across Australia under the mycar Tyre & Auto brand, per the announcement details reported by NewTimeSpace and BigGo Finance, providing one-stop tyre, vehicle maintenance and general repair services. Investing.com rounded the network to approximately 280 stores, but the company-specific store count in the announcement was 279. More than 1,600 employees transfer with the business, according to Automotive World and Yahoo Finance. ⁶⁷³⁵²

Per the announcement figures reported by NewTimeSpace, the target group recorded revenue of approximately A$524.66 million in 2025. BigGo Finance reported the 2024 figure as A$492 million, showing revenue growth over the two years, and after-tax profit rising from A$4.697 million in 2024 to A$10.833 million in 2025, more than doubling, with net assets of A$206 million as of 2025. Tyre News reported the revenue figures from Tuhu's filing as A$524.7 million in 2025, up from A$491.8 million in 2024. ⁶⁷⁴

On valuation, NewTimeSpace reported that Tuhu's independent valuer, Avista Valuation Advisory Limited, applied a market approach and concluded the fair value of 100 per cent of the equity interests in the target as at 30 June 2026 amounted to A$290,646,000, based on an average EV/EBITDA multiple of 9.8x. The agreed enterprise value of A$403 million is a separate deal basis from the estimated A$278.33 million completion payment, which NewTimeSpace said results from adjusting for the target group's net debt and working capital amounts and equates to approximately HK$1.55 billion. ⁶

Conditions, funding and listing-rule status

Completion is conditional upon satisfaction of pre-conditions including approvals from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the Federal Treasurer, and may or may not proceed, according to the announcement details reported by NewTimeSpace. Tyre News likewise reported that completion remains conditional on Australian competition clearance and foreign investment approval. Under Chapter 14 of the Hong Kong Listing Rules, NewTimeSpace reported the acquisition constitutes a discloseable transaction subject to notification and announcement requirements but not the circular and shareholders' approval requirements. ⁶⁴

On funding, the announcement reported by NewTimeSpace said the acquisition is expected to be funded by a combination of internal cash resources of the group and acquisition debt financing, with Tuhu having obtained credit approval from its lending banks for acquisition financing of not more than RMB1 billion. BigGo Finance and Tyre News reported the same funding structure and the RMB1 billion credit approval figure. ⁶⁷⁴

Continental's continuing role and the deal's historical context

The ownership change does not end Continental's Australian route to market. Tyre News and Automotive World reported that mycar will remain a Continental tyre distribution partner after completion, with the manufacturer also having developed its own Australian sales organisation. Continental Asia-Pacific tyre business head Dalibor Kalina said, in the statement carried by Yahoo Finance, that mycar Tyre & Auto had developed very successfully under the Continental umbrella, and that the continued distribution of Continental tyres through the network would ensure seamless continuity for customers. Automotive World reported that the companies already cooperate in China and see scope for closer ties. Tyre News noted, however, that no detailed integration programme or changes to mycar's tyre-brand sourcing have yet been disclosed. ⁴⁵²

Tyre News placed the transaction in historical context: Continental originally acquired Kmart Tyre and Auto Service in 2018, when KTAS operated 258 branches and the announced acquisition price was A$350 million, while Continental's annual report recorded a total 2018 purchase price of A$357.5 million. The chain was subsequently renamed mycar and expanded to 279 stores. Tyre News cautioned against comparing the 2018 purchase price directly with the current A$403 million enterprise value, because the current transaction uses enterprise value including debt and working capital adjustments, and the business itself has changed over eight years. ⁴

The disposal sits within Continental's wider move towards becoming a tyre-focused group. In July 2026, Continental agreed to sell ContiTech to Lone Star Funds for an enterprise value of €4.0 billion, and introduced a new regional reporting structure for its tyre-focused business from the third quarter of 2026, Tyre News reported. In the statement carried by Yahoo Finance, Continental said the transaction marks another step in the group's strategic focus on its core business to develop and manufacture tyres; Yahoo Finance also noted the earlier divestments of ContiTech's Original Equipment Solutions business area in February 2026 and the September 2025 spin-off of the Automotive group sector, now trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange as Aumovio. ⁴²

Tuhu's position and analyst commentary

Tuhu founder and chief executive Min Chen said in the statement carried by Automotive World that Australia is a highly attractive and promising market for automotive services and that mycar Tyre & Auto is a distinctive business with a strong position in it, adding that Tuhu looks forward to working closely with the existing management team and employees while continuing the long-standing partnership with Continental. Tuhu told investors, per Tyre News, that the acquisition would establish a meaningful operating presence outside China and provide a foundation for further international expansion. ⁵²⁴

BigGo Finance reported the buyer's broader profile: Tuhu Car, founded in 2011 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2023, reported 8,825 Tuhu workshop stores and about 31 million transacting users in the 12 months to 30 June 2026, figures also cited by Tyre News and Yahoo Finance as at that date. Its overseas footprint is in the early stages, currently operating 14 workshop stores in Malaysia, per BigGo Finance, which reported first-half 2026 group revenue of CNY 8.78 billion, up 11.4 per cent year-on-year, with adjusted net profit down 41.6 per cent to CNY 240 million, primarily due to rising raw material costs. BigGo Finance also reported Tuhu plans to deploy digital store management, workflow optimisation, inventory management and EV repair capabilities at Conti Trade. ⁷⁴²

In a Goldman Sachs research note published via Sina Finance on 29 September 2026, the bank maintained its target price of HK$13 for Tuhu-W. Goldman Sachs said that upon completion Tuhu would hold scaled quality assets in Australia, reducing domestic competition risk, with potential synergies in online customer acquisition, store operations and supply-chain scale. The bank said own-brand product sales may help improve mycar's gross margin, but that integrating an overseas fully direct-operated network and executing cross-border supply chain operations remain key execution challenges. Sina Finance reported the closing payment estimate as approximately A$278 million, equivalent to about HK$1.55 billion. ¹