21st Century Business Herald Reporter Yang Ping
The ChiNext is ushering in a new round of critical reforms.
On April 10, with the approval of the State Council, the China Securities Regulatory Commission officially released the &#34;Opinions on Deepening the Reform of the ChiNext to Better Serve the Development of New Quality Productivities&#34; (hereinafter referred to as the &#34;ChiNext Opinions&#34;), introducing a package of measures focusing on aspects such as issuance and listing, refinancing, mergers and acquisitions, investment-side reforms, and regulatory mechanisms. At the same time, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange has simultaneously solicited public opinions on four supporting business rules.
Among them, the reform of the issuance and listing system is undoubtedly the focus of market attention, emphasizing the need to support two types of &#34;high-quality innovations.&#34;
According to the &#34;ChiNext Opinions,&#34; a fourth set of listing standards will be added to provide better financial services for high-quality innovative entrepreneurial enterprises in emerging and future industries. It actively supports the issuance and listing of high-quality innovative enterprises in fields such as unprofitable innovative companies, new consumption, and modern services.
This series of measures is seen as a &#34;key leap&#34; to enhance the inclusiveness and adaptability of the capital market system, guiding factor resources to gather towards high-quality innovative entrepreneurial enterprises.
It is worth mentioning that as early as March this year, CSRC Chairman Wu Qing had previewed the core content of the ChiNext &#34;fourth set&#34; standards and other reforms. Reporters from the 21st Century Business Herald have also learned that major investment banks have begun preparations such as identifying potential targets and matching corporate qualifications.
A senior industry insider in South China pointed out to reporters, &#34;It is expected that by the end of April, the ChiNext is likely to welcome companies applying under the fourth set of standards. However, in the initial stage, the number of companies will not be large, and the overall ChiNext application projects will still mainly rely on the first and second sets of standards, with no large-scale expansion of unprofitable companies.&#34;
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<h4>Adding the Fourth Set of Standards: Which Companies Are Likely to Benefit?</h4>
Focusing on this, which companies are likely to benefit from this reform?
Since its establishment in 2009, the core positioning of the ChiNext has been to serve growth-oriented innovative entrepreneurial enterprises, with approximately 1,400 listed companies and a total market value of nearly 18 trillion yuan.
However, for a long time, companies listed on the ChiNext were required to meet certain revenue and net profit requirements.
Until June 2025, the ChiNext will officially implement the third set of standards (market value + revenue) — that is, &#34;expected market value of no less than 5 billion yuan, and operating revenue of no less than 300 million yuan in the most recent year,&#34; to support companies that are not yet profitable but have significant development potential and strategic value to go public.
Currently, the first case of an unprofitable company going public has been realized with the registration of DaPuWei, and the second unprofitable company on the ChiNext, Yuexin Semiconductor, has also been accepted and is steadily advancing through the review process.
The newly added fourth set of listing standards for the ChiNext further relaxes the market value and revenue requirements based on the third set, but introduces growth and innovation indicators such as revenue compound growth rate and R&amp;D investment
Currently, the fourth set of standards has established two indicators that can support the listing of innovative and entrepreneurial companies in various emerging industries and future industries:
The first type of indicator is &#34;an expected market value of no less than 3 billion yuan, operating revenue of no less than 200 million yuan in the most recent year, and a compound annual growth rate of operating revenue of no less than 30% over the last three years,&#34; primarily aimed at emerging industries with broader coverage and richer business formats, highlighting growth orientation.
The second type of indicator is &#34;an expected market value of no less than 4 billion yuan, operating revenue of no less than 200 million yuan in the most recent year, and cumulative R&amp;D investment of no less than 100 million yuan over the last three years, accounting for no less than 15% of cumulative operating revenue,&#34; mainly targeting future industries with significant strategic, leading, and uncertain characteristics, emphasizing innovation orientation.
&#34;By relaxing the requirements for market value and revenue, the inclusiveness and adaptability of the ChiNext will be significantly enhanced. However, by increasing the requirements for revenue growth rate and R&amp;D investment, it can also constrain 'pseudo-innovation' and companies with insufficient growth. The standard of a compound annual growth rate of over 30% is not an easy indicator. The new standards provide a more adaptable listing path for a group of companies that have already formed revenue scales, possess high growth potential or strong R&amp;D investment capabilities, but have not yet achieved profitability,&#34; said Cao Gang, a partner at Zehao Capital.
An investment banking professional from a medium-sized brokerage in Shanghai also stated that the biggest problem for many companies in the past was not a lack of competitiveness, but rather being on the eve of profit realization. If we only judge success by profitability, we may miss the stage in the company's growth cycle that most needs capital support.
<h4>Misaligned Development Highlighting Services for Growth-Oriented Innovative Enterprises</h4>
Compared to the Sci-Tech Innovation Board, the ChiNext also has certain distinctions in industry formats and indicator settings, highlighting the &#34;misaligned development&#34; of the two and the overall layout of a multi-tiered capital market.
A spokesperson for the China Securities Regulatory Commission also clearly stated that the Sci-Tech Innovation Board emphasizes &#34;hard technology&#34; characteristics, focusing on serving enterprises engaged in key core technology breakthroughs, and has formed industrial clusters in fields such as integrated circuits and biomedicine; the ChiNext primarily serves growth-oriented innovative entrepreneurial companies, nurturing a number of benchmark enterprises in fields such as new energy and high-end equipment.
&#34;The newly added fourth set of listing standards for the ChiNext focuses on the introduction, transformation, and application of cutting-edge technologies, forming certain distinctions from the relevant listing standards of the Sci-Tech Innovation Board in terms of indicator settings, applicable industry scope, and stages of industrial development,&#34; the spokesperson further pointed out.
For companies that are not yet profitable at the time of their initial public offering, the stock abbreviation will add a special identifier &#34;U&#34; before achieving profitability, continuously reminding of related risks; at the same time, the controlling shareholders, actual controllers, and directors and senior executives are prohibited from reducing their shares before the IPO for three complete accounting years from the date of listing.
It has been learned that ChiNext companies listed under the third and fourth sets of standards can apply to the exchange to remove the &#34;U&#34; identifier after achieving profitability for the first time post-listing.
<h4>Quality Consumption and Service Innovation Enterprises Will Benefit</h4>
The &#34;ChiNext Opinions&#34; also clearly state that it actively supports high-quality innovative enterprises in new consumption and modern service industries to issue and list on the ChiNext
Previously, due to factors such as adjustments in the IPO rhythm of the A-share market, the listing channels for consumer and service enterprises on the A-share market have narrowed, leading many companies to turn to the Hong Kong stock market or the Beijing Stock Exchange. In recent years, consumer companies such as Mixue Group, Laopu Gold, and Pop Mart, which have attracted widespread attention from investors, have all applied for A-share IPOs but ultimately opted for listings on the Hong Kong stock market.
Currently, consumer and service enterprises that are in the queue for review are mostly concentrated in the Beijing Stock Exchange track, such as Ying's Holdings, Yao Mazi, Baile Foods, and Southern Dairy.
However, in recent years, as the A-share IPO market continues to warm up, the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges have also made significant progress in reviewing consumer enterprises. For example, in May last year, high-standard down product supplier Guqi Down Materials and Taile Technology, which specializes in various home storage products and related functional materials, were listed on the main board and ChiNext of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, respectively.
In June 2025, the main board IPO application of cosmetics company Plant Doctor was accepted by the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, and the company has completed the second round of review inquiry letter responses.
In fact, the ChiNext has always covered consumer and service enterprises in terms of sector positioning and industry applicability, with no institutional barriers. This reform explicitly proposes to support and encourage high-quality innovative enterprises in new consumption and modern service industries, further responding to market demands and alleviating the listing concerns of enterprises in related fields.
Specifically, what exactly do &#34;new consumption&#34; and &#34;modern service industries&#34; refer to?
The &#34;Opinions of the State Council on Promoting High-Quality Development of Service Consumption,&#34; released in August 2024, clearly defines the main types of new consumption as digital consumption, green consumption, and health consumption.
Among them, digital consumption includes new consumption scenarios such as smart business circles, smart blocks, and smart stores, new models like &#34;Internet +&#34; medical services and digital education, new formats such as unmanned retail stores, self-service lockers, and cloud cabinets, as well as e-sports, social e-commerce, and live-streaming e-commerce; health consumption includes new service formats such as health check-ups, consultations, and management.
The &#34;Outline of the Strategic Plan for Expanding Domestic Demand (2022-2035)&#34; released by the State Council in 2022 categorizes new consumption scenarios into four major categories: first, online and offline integration, such as digital retail chains, unmanned retail stores, instant retail delivery platforms, and intelligent self-service ordering systems; second, &#34;Internet + social services,&#34; such as digital health management, digital cultural tourism, smart sports venues, and online knowledge payment; third, new formats of the sharing economy, such as shared charging, high-end idle goods trading platforms, shared cars, and shared offices; fourth, new individual economies, such as social e-commerce boutiques, influencer live streaming rooms, lightweight digital cultural and creative products, and personal IP knowledge services.
As for modern service industries, the National Bureau of Statistics' &#34;Statistical Classification of Modern Service Industries&#34; clearly states that modern service industries encompass eight categories: information transmission, software and information technology services, scientific research and technical services, finance, modern logistics, modern commerce, modern life services, modern public services, and integrated development services, emphasizing characteristics such as &#34;high technological content, high human capital content, and high added value.&#34;
BOC International Securities expects that the feasibility of new consumer companies, which previously shifted to Hong Kong stocks due to policy restrictions, returning to the ChiNext will significantly increase in the future. Among them, companies with the characteristics of &#34;consumer attributes + technological empowerment + scale replication&#34; are likely to benefit significantly

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The ChiNext welcomes a key reform, releasing the fourth set of listing standards aimed at supporting high-quality innovative enterprises, particularly those that are unprofitable and in sectors such as new consumption and modern services. This reform is seen as a way to enhance the inclusiveness of the capital market, with companies expected to submit applications by the end of April, although the initial number will be limited. Since its launch in 2009, the ChiNext has listed approximately 1,400 companies, with a total market value of nearly 18 trillion yuan

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Key Reforms of ChiNext: The Fourth Set of Standards is Here, Which Quality Innovative Enterprises Will Benefit?