Chinese AI infrastructure supplier Zhongji Innolight raises $6.8B in IPO
What's the story
Chinese optical components manufacturer, Zhongji Innolight, has raised HK$53.41 billion ($6.81 billion) through its Hong Kong listing. The company priced its shares at HK$980 each and sold 54.5 million shares in the process. This is the biggest share sale in Hong Kong since Alibaba's $12.9 billion secondary listing in 2019, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters.
Market impact
Listing is Asia's 2nd-largest share offering of the year
Zhongji Innolight's listing is also Asia's second-largest share offering of the year, only behind Chinese memory chipmaker CXMT's $8.6 billion Shanghai initial public offering.
The company's shares are set to begin trading in Hong Kong on July 30.
The funds raised from the listing will be used for research and development, global manufacturing capacity expansion, supply-chain improvements, acquisitions, and general working capital needs.
Business focus
Company has benefitted from AI infrastructure demand
Zhongji Innolight manufactures optical transceivers, which are key components for high-speed data transmission through fiber-optic networks.
Its products are extensively used in data centers, cloud computing infrastructure, and artificial intelligence systems.
The company's financial performance has been boosted by rising demand for AI infrastructure, with its first-quarter net profit nearly quadrupling to 6.32 billion yuan ($934.12 million) from a year earlier.
Market share
Company generated the majority of revenue from US market
Zhongji Innolight generated 61.7% of its revenue from the US market in Q1 2026.
The company has said its inclusion on a US Department of Defence list of Chinese military companies in June does not by itself restrict its business dealings with US customers or trading of its securities.
This comes as China pushes to develop domestic AI technology leaders amid US-led restrictions on access to advanced semiconductors.