China's CXMT Sets Record IPO, With Offering Size Up to 1.5 Trillion Won

[Financial News] ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), China's No. 4 DRAM maker, is moving ahead with a record-breaking Initial Public Offering (IPO), marking a milestone in the country's push for semiconductor self-reliance.
According to U.S. media reports on the 15th local time, CXMT said in a filing on the 14th that it had set the offering price at 8.66 yuan per share, or about 1,898 won. The offering for a listing on the SSE STAR Market involves 6.69 billion new shares. Including the over-allotment option, the total could reach 7.69 billion shares. As a result, the offering could be worth as much as 66.6 billion yuan, or about 14.598 trillion won. That is roughly twice the earlier estimate.
Li Minghong, a fund manager at Beijing Yikun Asset Management, said, "The fact that this offering drew demand far above the target shows investors are convinced that the uptrend in the memory market will continue." He added, "This also shows the company's unique position. Unlike firms driven purely by market logic, CXMT has received strong state support from the very beginning. The market is recognizing the company's strategic importance in easing bottlenecks."
By offering size, the IPO is the second-largest in Chinese history, after Agricultural Bank of China in 2010, which raised $10 billion. If the listing is completed successfully, it is expected to give momentum to other companies preparing for IPOs, including rival Yangtze Memory Technologies Corp (YMTC) and Kunlunxin, the semiconductor unit of Baidu.
whywani@fnnews.com Hong Chaewan Reporter