Chip firm priced as most valuable China firm pre-IPO on crypto site
The CXMT logo is displayed on a smartphone screen placed on a reflective surface projecting the Chinese flag during the initial public offering (IPO) of Chinese DRAM memory chip giant ChangXin Memory Technologies on July 17, 2026 in Creteil, France, sparking interest at the Shanghai STAR Market and raising nearly $8.6 billion.
Nurfoto | Nurfoto | Getty Images
Cryptocurrency traders are pricing ChangXin Memory Technologies, China’s largest memory chip maker, at levels that would make it the most valuable company listed on the mainland, days ahead of its record debut in Shanghai.
crypto startup trade.xyz CXMT offers linked contract hyperfluidIt is a decentralized derivatives exchange that allows investors to speculate on the chip maker’s valuation ahead of its official launch.
Continuous futures contract tracking CXMT traded around $6.35 per share It recently rose as high as $8.60 on Hyperliquid on Thursday, just days before the chipmaker’s blockbuster listing in Shanghai next Monday. CXMT did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the valuation.
The current price indicates a market capitalization of roughly $425 billion, or about 2.9 trillion yuan; This makes it more valuable than current prices. Industrial and Commercial Bank of ChinaIt is the mainland’s largest publicly traded company, with a value of approximately 2.56 trillion yuan.
The bid price was initially set as follows: 8.66 yuan ($1.28) per shareIt valued the company at just 579 billion yuan at listing, which would still make it the largest IPO in the history of the tech-focused STAR market.
Hyperliquid’s perpetual contracts are derivatives that allow investors to speculate on various assets such as crypto, commodities, and stocks without holding the underlying asset.
The sky-high premium was driven in part by offshore investors who have turned to crypto rails to create a parallel market for the Chinese chip maker, which is missing from one of the world’s most anticipated listings. The debut in Shanghai is effectively closed to foreigners, and even mainland retail investors face steep barriers to the STAR market; This requires an account balance of 500,000 yuan and two years of trading experience.
Analysts say the premium reflects lack of access as well as belief in the underlying business.
“A market like this doesn’t value the company; it’s guessing where the stock price might open,” said Eric Chen, co-founder and chief executive officer of Web3 finance company Injective Labs.
Given how Chinese IPOs are typically priced and the weak initial volatility, a strong debut is a reasonable expectation, he said — but with most global investors unable to access underlying shares and few liquid spaces to short shares, the price reflects the most optimistic participants.
“Part of the premium is guesswork,” Chen said. “Part of this is the price the world will pay for exposure it cannot get directly in the equity market.”
The listing of the world’s fourth-largest DRAM memory chip maker also comes amid a historic memory boom cycle, with AI-driven demand and global supply shortages driving up prices across the industry. The company plans to raise $8.6 billion in Asia’s largest IPO this year.
‘Measure of demand’
Chen said crypto-native platforms serve as informal price discovery for assets that would otherwise be out of reach for investors (pre-IPO names, restricted markets, after-hours trading), with some early contracts closely tracking final opening prices. “When this path is limited, it should be read as an indicator of demand, not as a definitive pricing event.”
The record so far is mixed. Tanay Ved, senior research associate at digital asset data firm Coin Metrics, wrote in a report last month that Hyperliquid’s pre-IPO perpetual holdings are creating “synthetic, 24/7 derivative markets” for private technology firms. The Cerebras Systems contract executed at about 1.3% of the stock’s Nasdaq opening price, Ved said.
His SpaceX After surging above $220 in May, the contract traded roughly 20% above its $135 fixed bid price ahead of the June debut – but still nowhere near the CXMT premium.
“What the funding and open interest tells you is that this is still a small, sentiment-driven market: enthusiastic long positions on one side, and a smaller group positioned for convergence on the other,” Chen said. “At this size, I believe the headline valuation is driven by a very modest amount of capital.”
The craze brings new scrutiny to Hyperliquid itself. Monetary Authority of Singapore added the platform to its list June Investor Warning ListIt publicly notifies people that an organization is not licensed or authorized in the city-state. Hyperliquid said the list was: not an act of prohibition or enforcementand never claimed to be regulated by MAS.
Moreover, Multicoin Capital co-founder Kyle Samani, who heads Forward Industries, said: “Hyperliquid is not unauthorized” In a claim made on its website, it was accused of misrepresenting the platform’s architecture, given its closed source code and concentrated set of validators.
Hyperliquid did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Once CXMT is listed, the contract will reconnect to the traded price, and gaps like this tend to close suddenly rather than gradually, Chen said. If open interest falls below contract, repricing will occur immediately; On the other hand, he added that strong onshore demand could push prices even higher.
“The more interesting question is what is left after this: a 24/7 market for a stock that trades only during Shanghai hours,” Chen said. “Any permanent gaps reflect the access barriers themselves rather than the company.”
