(Yicai Global) Dec. 30 -- The investment arm of Chinese electric car startup Nio has raised USD200 million in its first US dollar fund, technology media Leinews reported today.

Nio Capital's dollar fund will allow it to explore new opportunities under the 'new normal' and weather profound changes in the macro environment with the world's best investors, the report said, citing Nio founder and Chief Executive William Li. Called Eve One, the fund has already invested in a number of projects including self-driving technology developer Pony.ai and mobile travel platform Dida.

Investors include overseas sovereign trusts, pension funds, insurance institutions and well-known multinational companies, the Shanghai-based automaker said without going into further details.

The move is a positive development for Nio, dubbed the Tesla of China, which has been struggling with mounting losses since it began operations in 2014. Nio hemorrhaged CNY5.9 billion (USD845 million) in the first half of this year due to excessive marketing and product development costs, according to its latest financial report. Its third-quarter results are due out later today.

The firm's share price [NYSE:NIO] fell 3.6 percent to USD2.42 on Dec. 27, well below its issue price of USD6.26 in September last year.

But Nio may be ending the year on an uptick. It debuted its latest smart electric sport utility vehicle, the EC6, in Shenzhen on Dec. 28 to great fanfare. It is the firm's third NEV model to date. In November, the company delivered 2,528 cars, setting a new record for the fourth straight month. It shipped 17,395 units in the first 11 months of this year.

Founded in 2016, Nio Capital invests in the auto, energy, science, tech and the Internet of Things sectors. It manages a yuan-denominated fund valued at USD1.5 billion that has a portfolio of around 30 firms.