With 22 billion, the former richest man in Jinan is going for an IPO again.
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange welcomed a “former richest man.”
On August 20, Tianyue Advanced Materials Group Co., Ltd. (02631.HK) was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. On the first day of its listing, the company's stock price rose slightly by 6% from the offer price of HK$42.8 to HK$45.6 per share, with a total market capitalization of approximately HK$22 billion.
As a leading enterprise in the domestic silicon carbide substrate field, Tianyue Advanced has been active in the capital market in recent years. In January 2022, it was listed on the Science and Technology Innovation Board, becoming the “first stock in the silicon carbide substrate sector.” Now, it has successfully completed an IPO in Hong Kong. As stated in its previous announcement, “The listing of H shares this time is mainly to accelerate the company's internationalization strategy and overseas business layout, enhance the company's overseas financing ability, and improve the company's capital strength and comprehensive competitiveness.” Now that Tianyue Advanced has achieved the “A + H” listing pattern, its intention for international layout is obvious.
The leader of this hardcore enterprise naturally has an impressive background. Zong Yanmin from Jinan, Shandong, made it onto the Hurun Rich List in 2022 due to the successful listing of Tianyue Advanced. In his first appearance on the list, he ranked 473rd with a wealth of RMB 13 billion, topping the list in the Jinan area of Shandong. However, in the following years, his wealth decreased due to the shrinkage of the company's market value, but his status as a wealthy man in Jinan remains unshakable.
Meanwhile, the successful listing of Tianyue Advanced on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange also means that the “A + H” camp has added another powerful member. Behind industry giants such as Midea Group, SF Holding, Haitian Flavoring & Food, CATL, and Lens Technology, there are also leading enterprises like Luxshare Precision Industry, Dongpeng Beverage, Sunwoda Electronic, and Muyuan Foods rushing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange one after another.
The already bustling Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2025 is still attracting more and more attention.
The former richest man in Jinan rings the listing bell for the second time
The story of Tianyue Advanced begins with Zong Yanmin, a Shandong man born in the 1960s.
Zong Yanmin was born in Jinan in 1964. At the age of 19, he was admitted to the Department of Silicate Engineering at Shandong Institute of Light Industry (now Qilu University of Technology). After graduation, he was assigned to work as a technician at the state - owned Jinan Light Bulb Factory. This seemingly ordinary starting point came to an abrupt end when the factory closed down.
“I started my entrepreneurial journey with an unemployment certificate in hand.” Many years later, this Shandong man described this turning point in his life during a speech at the freshman orientation ceremony of his alma mater.
In 2002, Zong Yanmin founded Jinan Tianye Construction Machinery Co., Ltd., which specialized in the agency sales of Volvo excavators. Riding on the wave of China's infrastructure boom, the annual sales of his enterprise soared to over RMB 3 billion. However, this entrepreneur with an engineering background always had a dream about materials in his heart. After accumulating funds, instead of enjoying a comfortable life, Zong Yanmin didn't forget his ideal. “I've always had a dream, a dream about materials, to research, develop, and produce the most advanced and cutting - edge materials in the world and change the backward situation of Chinese materials.”
At that time, China's semiconductor industry was underdeveloped, and a large amount of semiconductors were imported every year. This not only made China subject to other countries but also seriously endangered national defense security. Therefore, Zong Yanmin decided to make a breakthrough in the field of semiconductor materials and allocated funds from the operating profit every year for material research.
Thus, Shandong Tianyue Advanced Materials Technology Co., Ltd., the predecessor of Tianyue Advanced, was officially established in 2010, which meant that Zong Yanmin began to fully devote himself to the long - term journey of industrializing silicon carbide semiconductor materials.
Nearly at the same time, Academician Jiang Minhua, one of the pioneers and leaders in the research and development of functional crystals in China, passed away. However, the silicon carbide material technology that he and his team had painstakingly developed for more than 10 years was left unused, and its industrialization was delayed. Because the transition from the laboratory to industrialization involves huge risks, no enterprise was willing to take on such risks.
But in Zong Yanmin's view at that time, silicon carbide semiconductor materials would become an “epoch - making material” that would bring humanity into the digital and low - carbon eras and reshape the global semiconductor industry landscape. Achieving self - control of materials and no longer being subject to other countries is of great strategic significance for safeguarding national security, developing the digital economy and high - end manufacturing, promoting industrial upgrading, and realizing the transformation of old and new driving forces. It can be regarded as a “national heavy weapon.”
So in 2011, after learning about this information, Zong Yanmin resolutely decided to introduce this patented technology. He signed a contract with Shandong University to purchase the relevant technology at a huge cost and started the industrialization of silicon carbide semiconductor materials. As Zong Yanmin said later, “With the belief of ‘strengthening materials and serving the motherland’, I made up my mind to industrialize this technology.”
Zong Yanmin's efforts were not in vain. Under his leadership, the technology and industrialization team carried out independent innovation and research for many years, conducted thousands of engineering experiments, and finally overcame the key technical difficulties. They mastered the core technologies of silicon carbide single - crystal growth and substrate processing and took the lead in this field globally.
In 2022, at the age of 58, Zong Yanmin brought this hardcore enterprise to the Shanghai Stock Exchange and rang the listing bell. In the same year, Zong Yanmin made his first appearance on the Hurun Rich List with a wealth of RMB 13 billion, ranking first in the Jinan area of Shandong and becoming the new richest man in Jinan. Although his net worth decreased later due to the company's market value, he is still a regular on the rich list.
Three years later, at the age of 61, Zong Yanmin came to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and rang the listing bell for Tianyue Advanced again.
The silicon carbide leader with an annual revenue of 1.7 billion
What's the background of Tianyue Advanced, which supports a market capitalization of billions?
Although the outside world is a bit unfamiliar with this company, it is an out - and - out leading enterprise in the semiconductor field. Even before it was listed on the secondary market in early 2022 and won the title of the “first stock in the silicon carbide substrate sector,” Tianyue Advanced had already won the favor of many VC/PE investors.
In 2019, as Tianyue Advanced was approaching its tenth anniversary, it introduced external investment for the first time in its fourth capital increase. Hubble Investment, a subsidiary of Huawei, invested in it.
It is worth mentioning that Hubble Investment was established by Huawei in 2019 to cope with Western technological restrictions and explore more new possibilities. It mainly makes strategic investments in new technology fields and does not pursue financial returns. In the past few years, Hubble Investment, which shoulders the mission of building Huawei's semiconductor industry chain, has invested in the entire semiconductor industry chain. The outside world praises it as the “strongest semiconductor VC.” The fact that it invested in Tianyue Advanced in the year of its establishment shows the high value of the Tianyue Advanced project.
After introducing Hubble Investment, Tianyue Advanced introduced external investors such as Zhonghaitaichang, Liaoning Haitong New Energy, and Liaoning Zhongde through a capital increase in December 2019. In 2020, it carried out three consecutive rounds of financing and introduced many financial investment institutions, industrial capitals, and local industrial funds, including Haitong Kaiyuan, Huiyou Investment, Heshang Zhongde, Yangtze River Capital, Jinpu Investment, Shenzhen Capital Group, AMEC, SDIC Venture Capital, CRRC Times Electric, High - tech Investment, Guoce Investment, CSR Venture Capital, Greater Bay Area Common Home Development Fund, Guoxin Kechuang Fund, Guohe Investment, and Xiaoxiang Capital.
In just half a year, the valuation of Tianyue Advanced soared from RMB 2.6 billion in May 2020 to RMB 10 billion in October 2020. At the crucial node of its tenth anniversary, Tianyue Advanced became a unicorn. In 2021, Tianyue Advanced, which was preparing for an IPO, completed two rounds of financing. In the list of strategic investors who subscribed for shares before the IPO in 2022, the names of industrial giants such as CATL, SAIC Motor, GAC Group, and XPeng Motors also appeared.
With the pursuit of many investors, Tianyue Advanced's performance after listing is also remarkable.
According to the data disclosed in Tianyue Advanced's 2024 annual report, the company achieved an operating income of RMB 1.768 billion in 2024, a year - on - year increase of 41.37%. It has maintained revenue growth for three consecutive years. In 2024, its market share in the global conductive silicon carbide substrate material market ranked among the top three in the world. In terms of products, the company's 8 - inch conductive substrate products are leading in terms of quality and mass - supply ability. It is one of the few market participants in the world that can supply 8 - inch silicon carbide substrates in large quantities. In November 2024, the company launched the industry's first 12 - inch silicon carbide substrate, which can increase the area available for chip manufacturing on a single wafer and significantly increase the yield of qualified chips.
In terms of production capacity, according to the annual report, in 2024, Tianyue Advanced comprehensively improved the production capacity and output of its core products. The production capacity and output of the Jinan factory advanced steadily. The Shanghai factory reached the production capacity plan of 300,000 conductive substrates per year ahead of schedule in mid - 2024. At the same time, the company will continue to promote the second - stage production capacity improvement plan.
Currently, silicon carbide materials have been widely used in the global new energy market. With the rapid growth of computing power required for AI development, the energy consumption of data centers is also increasing rapidly. Silicon carbide has great potential in data centers, power infrastructure, and terminal applications. For Tianyue Advanced, these are all business opportunities.
The 2024 annual report shows that it is estimated that by 2030, the global AI data center capacity is expected to increase to 299GW, a net increase of 244GW compared with 2023. This will directly push the proportion of data center power consumption in global electricity consumption from 1.4% in 2023 to 10.0% in 2030. The market size of power supply units using silicon carbide power devices in the field of AI data centers is expected to exceed RMB 80 billion.
Meanwhile, with the continuous penetration of silicon carbide semiconductor materials in application fields such as new energy vehicles and wind/solar energy storage, the downstream application market continues to expand, and the terminal demand for high - quality, automotive - grade products is strong. As the utilization rate of new production capacity increases and the production scale expands, Tianyue Advanced's profitability is bound to be effectively improved in the future.
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange is booming
Looking beyond Tianyue Advanced, a surging “A + H” listing wave comes into view.
Let's start from March 10. On this day, Chifeng Gold was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, becoming the first “A + H” company this year. Also in March, CATL obtained the overseas issuance and listing filing notice issued by the International Department of the China Securities Regulatory Commission and successfully listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in May, breaking the record of the largest IPO in Hong Kong in the past four years.
Also in May, Hengrui Medicine, a leading enterprise in innovative drugs, was officially listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, becoming the largest IPO in the Hong Kong stock pharmaceutical sector in the past five years. In June, Haitian Flavoring & Food also joined the “A + H” camp. In addition to being the largest Hong Kong stock IPO project in the consumer industry so far in 2025, it is also the second - largest Hong Kong stock IPO project in the entire market during the same period, second only to CATL.
The choices of the above A - share leading enterprises are not exceptions.
Since 2025, the popularity of the Hong Kong stock market has continued to rise. Many A - share leading enterprises have accelerated their layout in the capital market and are seeking to list in Hong Kong. According to incomplete statistics from The Capital, since the beginning of this year, nearly 50 A - share listed enterprises have submitted applications to list in Hong Kong. Among those announcing their intention to pursue a Hong Kong stock IPO are A - share leading enterprises such as Luxshare Precision Industry, Changchun High - tech Industries, and Unisplendour. Moreover, since June, A - share companies such as Haitian Flavoring & Food, Sanhua Intelligent Control, Anjoy Foods, Lens Technology, and Fengtiao Technology have successively listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
As is well - known, listing overseas is one of the important ways for domestic enterprises to develop internationally and standardize their operations. It is beneficial for enterprises to utilize foreign capital for development, optimize their modern corporate governance structure, and better integrate into the global economy. As an international financial center, the Hong Kong stock market has unique advantages and attractions that can meet the needs of these enterprises.
Sure enough, Zong Yanmin, the former richest man in Jinan, has also joined this mighty wave of secondary listing in Hong Kong.
Moreover, as we can see, the IPO boom in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is far from over.
According to the latest “China Mainland and Hong Kong IPO Market: Mid - year Review 2025” released by KPMG, in the first half of 2025, the global IPO market raised a total of $60.9 billion, and the number of listings reached 544. Among them, Hong Kong led the way with a fundraising amount of HK$107.1 billion (approximately $13.9 billion), a 22% increase compared with the whole year of 2024. The number of listings reached 42, covering main - board listings, GEM transfers, and De - SPAC projects. The two major US exchanges followed closely, but their total fundraising amount decreased by 8% year - on - year. The Shanghai Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India ranked fourth and fifth respectively.
Among them, the IPO fundraising amount of the Hong Kong stock market in the first half of 2025 was the second - highest for the same period in the past decade, only lower than the historical peak in 2021. Currently, the number of applications for listing on the Hong Kong main board has exceeded 200, covering diverse fields such as manufacturing, biotechnology, and artificial intelligence. It is estimated that the number of IPOs throughout the year will reach 90 - 100, and the total fundraising amount is expected to exceed HK$200 billion.
With the evolution of the geopolitical situation, Hong Kong will become the core platform for global capital to allocate Chinese assets. In 2025, it may regain the top position in global IPO fundraising.
This is inseparable from the strong policy support of the Chinese government.
At the press conference on “A Package of Financial Policies to Support Market Stability and Expectation Stabilization” held by the State Council Information Office on May 7, 2025, Wu Qing, the chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, said that in the future, market opening will be continuously deepened, and great support will be provided for the construction of the Shanghai International Financial Center and the consolidation and enhancement of the status of the Hong Kong International Financial Center. “We will strongly support the construction of the Shanghai International Financial Center and the consolidation and enhancement of the status of the Hong Kong International Financial Center, steadily promote the inclusion of RMB stock trading counters in the Hong Kong Stock Connect, and support various cooperation measures with Hong Kong to launch cross - border investment and risk management products in Hong Kong.”
Looking forward, as shown by Chen Yiting, the CEO of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, China has become the world's second - largest capital market, which is the result of the years of efforts of several domestic exchanges and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Next, China's capital market needs to be built into a multi - level market system, in which several exchanges can complement each other's advantages and develop in a differentiated way.
In the future, more and more enterprises will ring the listing bell on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.