CXMT Set to Debut as China's Most Valuable Listed Company After $9.8 Billion IPO

CXMT Corp., the Chinese memory chip champion formerly known as ChangXin Memory Technologies, is set to start trading on Shanghai’s STAR Market on Monday after raising up to 66.6 billion yuan ($9.8 billion) in what is shaping up as Asia’s largest initial public offering this year and the second-largest in China’s history.

The company sold approximately 6.69 billion shares at 8.66 yuan apiece, according to exchange filings. The base offering raised 57.92 billion yuan ($8.6 billion), with proceeds potentially rising to 66.61 billion yuan if an over-allotment option is fully exercised, the company said. The IPO was 212 times oversubscribed on the retail portion, with individual investors submitting orders worth 7.07 trillion yuan, according to the Businesstimes.

CXMT is the world’s fourth-largest maker of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), the chips used in computers, smartphones, servers and artificial intelligence systems. The company emerged as Beijing’s primary vehicle for reducing dependence on foreign suppliers in critical memory segments, particularly high-bandwidth memory for AI data centers.

The IPO proceeds will fund chip production, research and development, and working capital, the company said in a regulatory filing.

**First-Day Expectations and Market Impact**

Investor enthusiasm is running high. The IPO price implies 2.4 times book value, a 56% discount to the average price-to-book ratio of global DRAM peers SK Hynix, Micron Technology and Nanya Technology, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. The discount is even steeper — 77% — compared to Chinese chipmakers Semiconductor Manufacturing International and Hua Hong Grace Semiconductor.

Trading on shadow markets also points to exuberant expectations. A perpetual futures contract on the Hyperliquid blockchain tied to CXMT’s expected share price traded at $6.38 on Friday, about five times the offer price, implying a valuation of roughly $428 billion, the Businesstimes reported. That would vault CXMT past Industrial and Commercial Bank of China’s 2.6 trillion yuan market value to become the largest China-listed company.

“As the undisputed leader in China’s substitution story, there will be plenty of funds willing to buy once it pulls back to below 2 trillion yuan in value,” Zeng Jiqing, a fund manager at Beijing Nuohua Investment Management, said in the Businesstimes report. He added that he expects the company to take the crown as the most valuable company soon after trading begins.

Huaxi Securities projects a market value of 5 trillion yuan at 40 times 2026 earnings, with revenue more than doubling to 572.7 billion yuan by 2028 from an estimated 277.7 billion yuan in 2026, according to the Businesstimes.

**Liquidity Concerns and Broader Market Pressure**

The massive listing is stoking fears that it could pull cash from other Chinese equities as investors raise funds to get a piece of the IPO, according to a CNBC report. The STAR 50 Index, which tracks the largest and most liquid companies on the STAR Market, has slid nearly 20% this quarter.

Analysts cited by CNBC said the IPO is an “amplifying factor” that has exacerbated the decline but is not the root cause. “The primary reason for this pullback lies in crowded positioning and high leverage levels within the A-share tech sector,” said Tim Sun, senior researcher at HashKey Group. He added that a correction in Korean chip stocks spilled over into global semiconductor valuations and triggered profit-taking in China.

“There is no question that capital is being pulled from the market in preparation for the public listing of CXMT shares,” said Peter Alexander, founder of Z-Ben Advisors, as quoted by CNBC. He expects a marked jump in the share price on the first day and possibly the second day before both the shares and the broader market settle into a new equilibrium.

Benjamin Cavender, managing director at CMR Consulting, noted that the phenomenon resembles the “cash call” effect seen around major IPOs, when investors rotate out of listed companies to raise cash for highly anticipated offerings. China is especially vulnerable due to its large retail investor base and lottery-style IPO allocation system, he added. The direct liquidity impact should prove temporary, with cash likely returning once allocations are completed and trading begins.

However, a series of large IPOs could have a longer-lasting impact, Cavender warned. “If investors conclude that the market will need to absorb a sustained pipeline of giant semiconductor, AI, and national-champion offerings, then the impact could last longer — not because one IPO permanently removes liquidity, but because it changes the supply-demand balance for high-growth Chinese equities.”

**Strategic Significance and Industry Outlook**

Counterpoint Research views the IPO through a longer-term industry lens, expecting the capital raised to accelerate CXMT’s capacity expansion and strengthen its position in the global DRAM market, according to the CNBC report.

A successful listing could also build momentum for other companies in the deal pipeline, including rival Yangtze Memory Technologies and Baidu’s chip unit Kunlunxin, the Businesstimes reported. DeepSeek may file as soon as 2026 for an IPO, people familiar with the matter have said.

CXMT may be eligible for inclusion in Stock Connect in the third-quarter review in late August, with any inclusion taking effect in mid-September at the earliest, according to the Businesstimes. Newly issued stocks are not subject to daily trading limits during the first week of their debut on mainland bourses.

“Unlike some of the mega IPOs that came before it, CXMT hasn’t reached the limits of either its technology or its market share,” Zeng said.