GigaDevice jumps nearly 40% in Hong Kong debut amid China’s chip self-sufficiency drive

[HONG KONG/SINGAPORE] Shares of GigaDevice Semiconductor soared almost 40 per cent in their Hong Kong trading debut on Tuesday (Jan 13), with investors latching on to a company with surging earnings as China pushes for chip self-sufficiency amid tensions with the US.

GigaDevice, which raised HK$4.68 billion (S$772.3 million) in a second listing, is a fabless integrated circuit design house that also trades on the Shanghai bourse and was founded in 2005.

Its shares closed at HK$222.8, 38 per cent higher than the offer price of HK$162, giving the company a market cap of around HK$195 billion. The shares earlier rose as high as HK$248.8.

In NOR flash memory – which is used for storing code that runs devices, it ranks second globally with a market share of 18.5 per cent, the company said, citing research from consultancy Frost & Sullivan.

“GigaDevice is a chip company with testing and assembly capabilities, as well as strong earnings and good future development prospects,” said Kenny Ng, strategist at China Everbright Securities International.

GigaDevice’s net profit climbed nearly seven times to 1.1 billion yuan in 2024 on a 28 per cent jump in revenue, according to its Hong Kong listing prospectus.

Its NOR and other chips are used in areas such as consumer electronics, the auto industry and industrial automation.

Zhu Yiming, GigaDevice’s founder and chairman, noted that the company had grown from a business formed in a garage in 2004 to become the first domestic chip design company to list on the main board ten years ago.

It was now well positioned as “a chip department store”, he added.

“In the future, we will actively embrace AI, expand our product categories, and actively develop new business groups,” he said at the Hong Kong listing ceremony.

Proceeds from the Hong Kong share sale are due to be used for research and development as well as strategic and industry investments, including potential acquisitions.

Cornerstone investors include China Pinnacle Equity Management, Yunfeng Capital, Xiaomi, TCL Industries and Huaqin Technology, according to its prospectus.

Chinese artificial intelligence and semiconductor companies are tapping a resurgent Hong Kong equity fundraising market, spurred on by the AI boom and Beijing’s push to build up China’s technology capabilities in response to US curbs on high-end chips and chip-making equipment.

Hong Kong led global IPO fundraising in 2025, with US$37.2 billion raised from 115 new listings, according to LSEG data.

On Monday, shares of OmniVision Integrated Circuits ended their first day of Hong Kong trade 16.2 per cent higher. They dropped 6 per cent on Tuesday. REUTERS