U.S. electric car maker Tesla has set up a financial leasing company in Shanghai, according to China's National Enterprise Information Publicity System.

The newly established unit of Tesla, with a registered capital of 30 million U.S. dollars, was set up in Shanghai's free trade zone on December 19, as is shown from the business registration website. 

Its scope includes leasing and consultancy, the document said, which listed the firm's legal representative as Zhu Xiaotong, Tesla's boss in China.

The company has opened a tender process to build its Shanghai Gigafactory and at least one contractor has started buying materials, Reuters reported earlier this month.

The two-billion-U.S.-dollar factory, Tesla's first in China, marks a major bet by the U.S. electric vehicle (EV) maker as it looks to bolster its presence in the world's biggest auto market where it faces rising competition from a swathe of domestic EV makers and its earnings have been hit by increased tariffs on U.S. imports.

(With inputs from Reuters)