China chip IPOs covered almost 3,000 times for retail after Moore Threads

Two Chinese chipmakers are attracting strong retail investor demand, buoyed by industry peer Moore Threads Technology Co’s (摩爾線程) stellar debut.The retail portion of MetaX Integrated Circuits (Shanghai) Co’s (上海沐曦) upcoming initial public offering (IPO) was 2,986 times oversubscribed on Friday, according to a filing. Meanwhile, Beijing Onmicro Electronics Co (北京昂瑞微), which makes radio frequency chips, was 2,899 times oversubscribed on Friday, its filing showed. The bids coincided with Moore Threads’ trading debut, which surged 425 percent on Friday after raising 8 billion yuan (US$1.13 billion) on bets that the company could emerge as a viable local competitor to Nvidia Corp in artificial intelligence (AI) chips. In China, enthusiasm also has been building as chipmakers are increasingly deemed as key beneficiaries of the nation’s push for technological self-sufficiency, fueled by trade tensions and fears of US technology curbs. Prior to trading, Moore Threads’ shares also drew robust demand from retail investors, with subscriptions overshooting by roughly 2,750 times. Founded in 2020 by former Nvidia executive Zhang Jianzhong (張建中), Moore Threads had started out earning revenue from graphics chips for gaming and visual rendering before pivoting to AI accelerators used in large language models. Proceeds from the IPO would fund next-generation projects in AI and graphics chips as well as supplement working capital. IPOs in China have performed strongly this year, partly because regulators keep a tight lid on new approvals on concerns that a surge of new listings could strain market liquidity. Softer risk appetite in the secondary market in the past few weeks has also fueled interest in new debuts. With MetaX’s pre-IPO offer price at 104.66 yuan per share, bids from retail investors poured in totaling about 3 trillion yuan. Beijing Onmicro, priced at 83.06 yuan per share, attracted about 1.4 trillion yuan in bids. Chinese retail investors swarm to hot IPOs, because the process resembles a lottery. With no upfront payment required, millions join bids on the chance of winning shares at minimal risk. The oversubscription rate was calculated by Bloomberg News based on the online winning rate disclosed by the companies in filings. Founded in 2020, MetaX is seeking to raise US$585.8 million in its upcoming Shanghai debut. The company operates in markets similar to Moore Threads, focusing on the manufacturing of graphics processing unit chips.