CXMT Hits STAR Market Monday With $8.6B War Chest and a Hard Equipment Ceiling

CXMT, China’s largest DRAM maker, is set to begin trading Monday on the Shanghai Stock Exchange STAR Market after a major fundraising. The offering raised ¥57.9 billion (about $8.55 billion) and dragged on secondary-equity sentiment enough to push the STAR 50 Index down nearly 20% from its July 1 peak by the time subscription closed on July 16. Shares were priced at ¥8.66 each (about $1.28), and if an overallotment option is fully exercised, total proceeds could reach ¥66.6 billion (about $9.84 billion). The IPO is described as Asia’s largest of 2026 and the biggest semiconductor listing on the STAR Market, a board created in 2019 to funnel public capital into technology deemed strategically important. The article links the pre-trading selloff to subscription mechanics requiring investors to freeze funds, often prompting liquidation elsewhere. Industry context notes that Samsung plans fiscal 2026 investments above ¥110 trillion won and Micron expects capex above $25 billion, while SK Hynix recently completed a $26.5 billion Nasdaq share sale, underscoring how much larger incumbent spending is versus CXMT’s haul.