ChangXin Memory Technologies became mainland China’s most valuable listed company after its shares surged 466% on their first day of trading in Shanghai. The Chinese memory chipmaker closed at 49 yuan, compared with its initial public offering price of 8.66 yuan, giving it a market value of about 3.3 trillion yuan ($487 billion).
The valuation placed CXMT ahead of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. Its shares had risen as much as 535% during the session before giving up part of those gains.
IPO Raises $8.6 Billion
CXMT raised approximately 57.9 billion yuan ($8.6 billion) through its listing on the Shanghai Stock Exchange’s STAR Market. The transaction was Asia’s largest IPO of 2026 so far and the biggest semiconductor share sale completed on mainland China.
The company sold nearly 6.7 billion shares at 8.66 yuan each. The offering could raise as much as 66.6 billion yuan if its over-allotment option is exercised in full.
Demand significantly exceeded the number of shares available. The retail portion was reportedly subscribed more than 200 times, while only about 6.7% of CXMT’s total shares were available for trading following the listing. The limited supply contributed to the sharp increase in its market price.
Funding Will Expand Memory Chip Production
Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Hefei, CXMT designs and manufactures dynamic random-access memory chips. DRAM is used in smartphones, personal computers, servers and data centres, including systems supporting artificial intelligence workloads.
CXMT said it plans to use much of the IPO proceeds to upgrade its production lines, increase manufacturing capacity and develop more advanced memory technologies. Its projects include newer generations of DRAM and high-bandwidth memory designed for AI computing systems.
The listing reflects strong investor interest in Chinese semiconductor companies as Beijing seeks to reduce its reliance on imported technology. CXMT competes with Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Micron, which together continue to control most of the global DRAM market.
Memory Chip Listings Attract Investors
CXMT’s debut followed SK Hynix’s $26.5 billion US share offering earlier in July. The South Korean company sold 177.9 million American depositary shares at $149 each before its Nasdaq debut, where the shares closed nearly 13% higher on their first day.
CXMT’s valuation now reflects expectations that AI-related demand will continue supporting memory chip sales. However, the small number of freely traded shares and the cyclical nature of the memory market could produce significant price volatility after the initial surge.
Featured image credits: Polites News
For more stories like it, click the +Follow button at the top of this page to follow us.