BEKE vs ALB Comparison

KE Holdings, or Beike, is a large residential real estate sales and rental brokerage company in China. Founded in 2001, the company operates through self-owned Lianjia stores in Beijing and Shanghai and connected third-party agencies, including franchise brand Deyou in other cities, with commissions charged on existing-home and new-home transactions. Leveraging an online-offline hybrid model, Beike also attract clients through its namesake online marketplace. The company tapped into home renovation services by acquiring Shengdu Home Decoration in 2022. As of the end of 2024, Beike's co-founders collectively control the company, while Tencent and its affiliates share 8% of voting power.

Albemarle is one of the world's largest lithium producers. In the lithium industry, the majority of demand comes from batteries, where lithium is used as the energy storage material, particularly in electric vehicles. Albemarle is a fully integrated lithium producer. Its upstream resources include salt brine deposits in Chile and the US and two hard rock mines in Australia, both of which are joint ventures. The company operates lithium refining plants in Chile, the US, Australia, and China. Albemarle is a global leader in the production of bromine, used in flame retardants.