- Zhongji Innolight opened at HK$971, about 0.9% below its HK$980 offer price, after raising HK$53.41 billion ($6.81 billion). [1][2] - The prospectus says five customers generated 81.9% of first-quarter revenue, while the U.S. accounted for 61.7%. [3][4] - The company says its addition to the Pentagon’s Section 1260H list has not restricted business with U.S. customers or trading in its securities.
[4][5] Zhongji Innolight opened below its offer price in Hong Kong on Thursday after completing a HK$53.41 billion ($6.81 billion) share sale, giving the AI data-center supplier a subdued start after Asia’s second-largest listing of 2026. The shares opened at HK$971, about 0.9% below their HK$980 offer price.[1][2]
The Shenzhen-listed company sold 54.5 million H shares, pricing below the HK$1,010 maximum in its prospectus. The deal was Hong Kong’s largest share sale since Alibaba’s secondary listing in 2019, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters.[2]
AI customers bring growth and concentration #
Zhongji makes optical transceivers that move data between processors and networking equipment inside AI clusters. Its prospectus, citing China Insights Consultancy, ranked the company first globally by optical-interconnect revenue for five consecutive years through 2025 and estimated a 28.1% share of the high-speed data-center market last year.[3]
Independent reporting identifies Nvidia, Alphabet and Meta as customers, although the prospectus does not name the accounts behind its concentration figures. Zhongji’s five largest customers supplied 81.9% of revenue in the first quarter, while high-speed products contributed 94.6%.[3][6]
U.S. exposure remains the policy risk #
The U.S. generated 61.7% of Zhongji’s first-quarter revenue, leaving the company exposed to changes in export controls and technology policy. The Pentagon added Zhongji to its Section 1260H list of alleged Chinese military companies in June.[4][5]
Zhongji said the designation did not itself prohibit sales to U.S. customers or securities trading, and that orders, production and its supply chain remained unaffected. The company plans to use the listing proceeds for optical-product research, global manufacturing expansion, supply-chain upgrades, acquisitions and working capital.[2][4]
Companies mentioned #
Further sources #
[1] CNBC, “China AI supplier Zhongji Innolight slips in Hong Kong debut after $6.8 … ↗ [2] Reuters, “Zhongji Innolight raises $6.81 billion in Asia’s second-largest listi… ↗
[3] Zhongji Innolight Hong Kong prospectus, July 22, 2026. ↗
[4] Reuters reporting on Zhongji Innolight’s U.S. revenue exposure, customer demand… ↗
[[5] U.S. Department of Defense, Federal Register notice covering the Section 1260H … ↗](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-06-10/pdf/2026-11625.pdf)
[[6] The Star/Bloomberg, “Innolight gets nod for US$8bil Hong Kong listing,” July 20… ↗](https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2026/07/20/innolight-gets-nod-for-us8bil-hong-kong-listing)
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