Shares of Chinese memory chipmaker Changxin Technology Group made a blockbuster entrance on Shanghai’s STAR Market on Monday, surging almost 466% in its first day of trading and turning CXMT into the most valuable company listed in mainland China.
The Hefei-headquartered semiconductor company raised 57.92 billion yuan, or about $8.6 billion, after setting its initial public offering price at 8.66 yuan per share. The deal stands as Asia’s largest IPO so far this year.
By the closing bell, CXMT shares had climbed to 49 yuan, lifting the company’s market capitalization to roughly 3.3 trillion yuan. That pushed it ahead of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, which is valued at about 2.6 trillion yuan.
According to figures disclosed in its IPO prospectus, CXMT held 7.67% of the global DRAM market in 2025, based on fourth-quarter sales. DRAM, or dynamic random-access memory, is a key chip used across consumer electronics and data infrastructure, from smartphones and laptops to servers.
The global DRAM chip industry has long been led by South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, alongside U.S.-based Micron Technology.
Theodore Shou, CEO of Yiyi Capital, said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” that he sees significant room for CXMT to expand. “I have no doubt the company is going to grow to be a global leader,” he said, adding that it may only be a matter of time before the firm moves from industry challenger to “global champion” in the sector.
The high-profile Shanghai listing arrives as CXMT draws growing international attention. Earlier this month, reports said Apple had started testing the Chinese chipmaker’s DRAM for use in devices sold within China.
CXMT’s financial performance has also strengthened sharply. The company reported an operating profit of 35.43 billion yuan in the first quarter, reversing a 2.83 billion yuan loss from the same period a year earlier, helped by rising global demand for computing power and capacity planning by major manufacturers.
“A 470% performance on day one isn’t that rare. What’s very prominent in this particular case is a company of this size performing so well,” Shou said. In the past, such performance was primarily driven by smaller-cap companies, he said, adding that for CXMT, the relatively limited free float on day one, combined with the built-up market sentiment, were key factors driving the surge.
Morningstar said in a note Friday that as AI is increasingly becoming an issue of national security for China, CXMT will likely be a key beneficiary. The research firm added that while CXMT’s technology still lags global memory leaders, domestic internet giants spearheading AI development will likely drive robust adoption of its chips as Beijing pushes for semiconductor self-sufficiency.
CXMT, founded in 2016 by Chairman Zhu Yiming, plans to boost its technological capabilities and core competitiveness, primarily memory wafer mass production and R&D projects, by employing the IPO proceeds, according to a Google translation of the information in the prospectus.
“I think we are nearing a short-term peak in terms of sentiment around the memory cycle,” Shou warned, adding that investors have already been selling into the IPO, particularly in China. “These memory chip businesses are sustainable, but the great margins and net profitability we’re seeing today are not sustainable and have to normalize over a cycle,” he said.
He also added that while this may not be the peak for share prices, the market is right at the peak of a demand and supply imbalance.
