Correspondence 0001104659-25-017291 from Xunlei Ltd (XNET) (CIK 0001510593) (XNET)
Xunlei Ltd (XNET) (CIK 0001510593)
Date: Feb. 26, 2025 · CIK: 0001510593 · Accession: 0001104659-25-017291
AI Filing Summary & Sentiment
File numbers found in text: 001-35224
Referenced dates: December 10, 2024
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Xunlei Limited
3709 Baishi Road
Nanshan District, Shenzhen 518000
The People’s Republic of China
February 26, 2025
VIA EDGAR
Ms. Christine
Dietz
Division of Corporation Finance
Office of Technology
Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F Street, N.E.
Washington, D.C. 20549
Re: Xunlei Limited (the “Company”)
Form 20-F for the Fiscal Year Ended
December 31, 2023
Filed on April 23, 2024 (File No. 001-35224)
Dear Ms. Dietz,
This letter sets forth the Company’s responses
to the comments contained in the letter dated December 10, 2024 from the staff (the “Staff”) of the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) regarding the Company’s annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year
ended December 31, 2023 filed with the Commission on April 23, 2024 (the “2023 Form 20-F”) and the Company’s
response letter to the Staff’s comments regarding the 2023 Form 20-F submitted on September 6, 2024 and the subsequent calls with
the Staff. The Staff’s comments are repeated below in bold and are followed by the Company’s responses thereto. All capitalized
terms used but not defined in this letter shall have the meaning ascribed to such terms in the 2023 Form 20-F.
Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December
31, 2023
Note 2. Summary of significant accounting
policies
(k) Goodwill, page F-19
1. We note your response to prior comment 2 and the subsequent calls with the Staff. As noted on the December 10, 2024 call, the Staff
objects to your conclusion that “Net Cash” should be added to your market capitalization to arrive at fair value. Therefore,
considering that your market capitalization is substantially below your consolidated book value, please explain to us how you concluded
that your goodwill was not impaired as of December 31, 2023.
Division of Corporation Finance
Office of Technology
Securities and Exchange Commission
February 26, 2025
Page 2
Response:
Goodwill Impairment Assessment
The Company appreciates the Staff’s comments
and respectfully submits the following response to further clarify our goodwill impairment assessment as of December 31, 2023.
As part of our annual goodwill impairment test,
the Company engaged a third-party valuation specialist to assist in determining the fair value of the Xunlei reporting unit ("Xunlei
RU"). The assessment was performed in accordance with ASC 350-20 and related US GAAP guidance, under the income approach
(discounted cash flow, "DCF" model). The fair value determined by the DCF model exceeded the carrying value of Xunlei RU, indicating
that goodwill was not impaired as of December 31, 2023.
Evaluation of Market Capitalization as an Indicator
of Fair Value
ASC 350-20-35-3C requires entities to consider
whether there are events or circumstances that indicate it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is below its
carrying amount. A decline in market capitalization is one of the factors that shall be assessed in conjunction with other
qualitative and quantitative factors.
We acknowledge that the Company’s market
capitalization as of December 31, 2023, was substantially below its consolidated book value. In response to this observation, we
conducted a reconciliation analysis to evaluate potential discrepancies between our DCF-based fair value estimate of a controlling
shareholder valuation and the Company's market capitalization.
In evaluating the relevance of the company’s
market capitalization as derived from a non-controlling shareholder price of the ADRs, we note the following factors that we considered:
1. Liquidity
and analyst coverage issues: The Company’s American Depositary Receipts (ADR) are thinly traded and lack any analyst
coverage. These conditions may have influence on market pricing in a way that does not necessarily reflect the operating performance
or the long-term cash-generation ability of the business which a controlling party would acquire the Company for.
2. Structural
Considerations: Factors specific to the Company, including adjustments to reflect a controlling interest, the need for a
Variable Interest Entity (VIE) structure for non-Chinese investors, and the associated tax considerations on distributing excess cash
via dividends to foreign investors, contribute to the observed market discrepancies.
3. Impact
of net cash balance: As of December 31, 2023, the Company held approximately net cash of USD 236 million, whereas its market capitalization
was USD105 million. If market participants were attributing substantial value to the net cash balance, this would imply a significant
negative enterprise value, which is inconsistent with the Company’s historical and projected financial performance. We believe
that a controlling
shareholder who would acquire the company would be a Chinese person or entity and would value the net cash in addition to the value of
the operations.
Division of Corporation Finance
Office of Technology
Securities and Exchange Commission
February 26, 2025
Page 3
Thus, we concluded that market capitalization
did not provide a reasonable measure of fair value of the Company as of December 31, 2023 and 2024 in our case. The reconciliation analysis
to market capitalization serves as a qualitative check to ensure that we evaluate and consider potential contradictory evidence that would
indicate that the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. Based on our comprehensive and balanced analysis,
the Company holds that its DCF model serves as a reasonable basis of its fair value determination.
DCF Model as a Reliable Fair Value Estimate
In accordance with ASC 820 (Fair Value Measurement) and ASC
350-20, the Company believes that its DCF model provides a more appropriate and relevant measure of fair value for the following
reasons:
· DCF
Model Robustness: The DCF model is based on conservative long-term cash flow projections (5 years) and has undergone sensitivity analyses
to evaluate the reliability of estimated cash flows.
· DCF
Model is a commonly accepted valuation methodology: The income approach is widely used in accounting and finance to estimate fair value,
particularly when the market may not reflect fundamental value due to liquidity constraints or other market inefficiencies.
· As
noted above, the market capitalization derived from the ADR price implied a significant negative value for the operating business that
had a track record of positive cash flows and the company expected to continue to have positive cash flows. Because there is no analyst
coverage, we do not have insight into how the market is evaluating our net cash and investments but it is not reasonable that the operating
business has a negative value.
Goodwill Impairment Assessment in FY24
As part of our ongoing goodwill assessment, we
provide the following information with respect to our annual FY 24 impairment test for consideration as well.
The Company conducted an impairment test for Xunlei
RU as of December 31, 2024 in accordance with ASC 350, using the income approach and compared it to the carrying value of the assets
and liabilities, including goodwill, of Xunlei RU.
Considering the actual business results in the
latter part of 2024 and trends in our business and market growth, we have updated our projections and assumptions in our DCF valuation
for our 2024 goodwill assessment. Based on the impairment test, the fair value of Xunlei RU was below its carrying value resulting in
a full impairment of approximately US$20.7 million.
Division of Corporation Finance
Office of Technology
Securities and Exchange Commission
February 26, 2025
Page 4
Market competition and pricing pressure that caused
our updated forecast and the resulting impairment of goodwill occurred in late 2024 (and have continued to date in 2025 and we forecast
will continue during our forecast period). This is different from the market conditions that informed our prior DCF and do not impact
the assumptions in our FY23 impairment test and our assessment conclusion of the fair value of the Xunlei RU as of December 31, 2023.
Additional disclosure under the critical accounting estimates will
be made when we file our 20-F for 2024. We propose to disclose the following:
Changes in the carrying amount of goodwill
for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2024 were as follows:
(In thousands)
December 31,
2023
December 31,
2024
Beginning balance
21,179
20,826
Foreign currency translation adjustments
(353 )
(78 )
Accumulated impairment
—
(20,748 )
Ending balance
20,826
—
The US$20.7 million impairment of goodwill
in 2024 was made mainly as the financial performance of the Company’s cloud computing business declined significantly in late 2024
which we believe will be a sustained trend that has been reflected in our estimated future results from this business.
Conclusion
The Company performed a goodwill impairment
test in accordance with ASC 350-20, utilizing the DCF model, which is a widely accepted valuation technique. The Company carefully
considered market capitalization as a potential impairment indicator, but due to the factors outlined above (liquidity, lack of analyst
coverage, and structural considerations), we concluded that market capitalization did not provide a reasonable measure of fair value of
the Company from a controlling party perspective. The DCF model resulted in a fair value exceeding the carrying value, supporting
the conclusion that goodwill was not impaired as of December 31, 2023.
We respectfully submit the above response for
your consideration and will be available to discuss any further questions.
* * *
If you have any additional
questions or comments regarding the 2023 Form 20-F, please contact the undersigned at +86 0755 6111 1571 or zhounaijiang@xunlei.com, or
the Company’s U.S. counsel, Haiping Li of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, at +86 21 6193 8210 or haiping.li@skadden.com.
Very truly yours,
Xunlei Limited
By:
/s/ Naijiang (Eric) Zhou
Name:
Naijiang (Eric) Zhou
Title:
Chief Financial Officer
cc: Jinbo Li, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Xunlei Limited
Haiping Li, Esq., Partner, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher
& Flom LLP