Chinese memory chipmaker ChangXin Memory Technologies is being valued at approximately $425 billion on crypto platform Hyperliquid, where a CXMT-linked perpetual futures contract traded near $6.35 per share on Thursday after peaking recently at $8.60, days before the company's Monday listing on Shanghai's STAR Market. The implied valuation of roughly 2.9 trillion yuan would exceed Industrial and Commercial Bank of China's 2.56 trillion yuan market capitalization, making CXMT the mainland's most valuable listed company despite an official IPO price set at 8.66 yuan ($1.28) per share—a 579 billion yuan valuation that would still mark the STAR market's largest tech offering. The outsized premium is driven by offshore investors locked out of the Shanghai debut, which is effectively closed to foreigners, and mainland retail investors facing STAR market barriers requiring a 500,000 yuan account balance and two years of trading experience. Crypto startup Trade.xyz offers the contract on Hyperliquid, a decentralized derivatives exchange, enabling speculation on the world's fourth-largest DRAM memory chipmaker ahead of its up to $8.6 billion raise—Asia's largest IPO this year—amid AI-driven memory demand and global supply shortages.
CXMT Contract Trades at $6.35 on Hyperliquid Ahead of Monday Debut
The perpetual futures contract tracking CXMT traded near $6.35 per share on Hyperliquid on Thursday. The current price implies a market capitalization of roughly $425 billion, or about 2.9 trillion yuan, which would make it more valuable than Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the mainland's largest listed company at roughly 2.56 trillion yuan. The offer price was initially set at 8.66 yuan ($1.28) per share, giving the company a valuation of just 579 billion yuan at listing. Hyperliquid's perpetual contracts are derivatives that allow traders to speculate on various assets, such as crypto, commodities, and equities, without holding the underlying asset. CXMT didn't immediately respond to a request for comment about the valuation.
Offshore Investors Drive Premium Amid Shanghai Access Barriers
The outsized premium was fueled in part by offshore investors who, locked out of one of the world's most anticipated listings, turned to crypto rails to build a parallel market for the Chinese chipmaker. The Shanghai debut is effectively closed to foreigners, and even mainland retail investors face steep barriers to the STAR market, which requires a 500,000 yuan account balance and two years of trading experience. "A market like this isn't valuing the company; it's forecasting where the price of the stock might open," said Eric Chen, co-founder and chief executive officer of Web3 finance firm Injective Labs. Given how Chinese IPOs are typically priced, and the thin initial float, a strong debut is a reasonable expectation, he said, but with most global investors unable to access the underlying shares and few liquid venues to short the stock, the price reflects the most optimistic participants. "Part of the premium is a forecast," Chen said. "Part of it is simply what the world will pay for exposure it can't get directly in the equities market."
Hyperliquid Pre-IPO Contracts Show Mixed Settlement Record
Crypto-native platforms are increasingly serving as informal price discovery for assets investors can't otherwise reach, and some early contracts have closely tracked eventual opening prices, Chen said. "When that path is limited, it should be read as a gauge of demand, not a precise pricing event." Hyperliquid's pre-IPO perpetuals have created "synthetic, 24/7 derivative markets" for private tech firms, Tanay Ved, a senior research associate at digital-asset data firm Coin Metrics, wrote in a report last month. Its Cerebras Systems contract settled within about 1.3% of the stock's Nasdaq opening price, Ved said. Its SpaceX contract traded roughly 20% above the fixed $135 offer price ahead of the June debut after peaking above $220 in May. "What the funding and open interest tell you is that this is still a small, sentiment-driven market: enthusiastic longs on one side, and a smaller group positioned for convergence on the other," Chen said. "At this size, I believe the headline valuation is being set by a very modest amount of capital."
MAS Adds Hyperliquid to Investor Alert List in June
The frenzy is drawing fresh scrutiny to Hyperliquid itself. The Monetary Authority of Singapore added the platform to its Investor Alert List in June, which publicly notifies people that an entity is neither licensed nor authorized in the city-state. Hyperliquid said the listing is not a ban or enforcement action, and that it has never claimed to be regulated by MAS. Kyle Samani, the Multicoin Capital co-founder who chairs Forward Industries, said that "Hyperliquid is not permissionless," a claim it makes on its website, and accused the platform of misrepresenting its architecture given its closed-source code and concentrated validator set. Hyperliquid didn't respond to CNBC's request for comment.
Contract to Re-Anchor to Traded Price After Monday Listing
Once CXMT lists, the contract will re-anchor to the traded price, and gaps like this tend to close abruptly rather than gradually, Chen said. "The more interesting question is what's left afterward: a 24/7 market on a stock that trades only Shanghai hours," Chen said. "Any persistent gap reflects the access barriers themselves rather than the company."
FAQ
What price is CXMT trading at on Hyperliquid before its Monday IPO?
The CXMT-linked perpetual futures contract traded near $6.35 per share on Hyperliquid on Thursday, after peaking recently at $8.60. The current price implies a market capitalization of roughly $425 billion, or about 2.9 trillion yuan, compared to the official IPO price of 8.66 yuan ($1.28) per share set for the Monday listing on Shanghai's STAR Market.
Why is the Hyperliquid contract trading at such a premium to CXMT's IPO price?
The outsized premium is driven by offshore investors locked out of the Shanghai debut, which is effectively closed to foreigners, and mainland retail investors facing STAR market barriers requiring a 500,000 yuan account balance and two years of trading experience. Eric Chen of Injective Labs said the price reflects what global investors will pay for exposure they can't get directly in the equities market, with most unable to access the underlying shares and few liquid venues to short the stock.
What regulatory scrutiny is Hyperliquid facing?
The Monetary Authority of Singapore added Hyperliquid to its Investor Alert List in June, publicly notifying people that the platform is neither licensed nor authorized in the city-state. Kyle Samani of Multicoin Capital accused the platform of misrepresenting its architecture as "permissionless" given its closed-source code and concentrated validator set. Hyperliquid said the MAS listing is not a ban or enforcement action and that it has never claimed to be regulated by MAS.
