China IPOs jump 56% as regulator eases restrictions to drive tech innovation

Initial public offerings (IPOs) on mainland Chinese markets surged 56 per cent in the first quarter from a year earlier, as the securities regulator relaxed curbs on equity financing to support the nation’s push for technological innovation.

Twenty-nine companies raised a combined 25.7 billion yuan (US$3.7 billion) from the Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing stock exchanges in the first three months, according to Bloomberg data. That compared with 16.5 billion yuan raised by 27 companies in the same period in 2025.

The upsurge marked a continuing IPO market recovery, as the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) sped up approvals and reintroduced rules allowing qualified pre-revenue tech companies to raise money. Equity financing is an important funding channel for achieving Beijing’s objective of technological self-reliance, which was prioritised in China’s five-year development plan at the annual legislative meeting last month.

“The regulator made it clear on many occasions that high-quality tech companies would be welcome to go public,” said Wang Zhengzhi, an analyst at Guotai Haitong Securities. “Therefore, the pace of IPOs is expected to speed up further in 2026.”

Total IPO proceeds might rise to about 150 billion yuan this year, with the number of companies conducting new share sales ranging between 90 and 150, according to Wang’s estimates. Funds raised from new offerings more than doubled to 128 billion yuan in 2025, Bloomberg data showed.

Signs of a pickup in new offerings emerged last month when CSRC chairman Wu Qing said that IPO reforms would soon be extended to the ChiNext board of start-ups on the Shenzhen exchange. The board would adopt more flexible listing rules similar to Shanghai’s Nasdaq-style Star Market, such as allowing companies undergoing IPO reviews to simultaneously sell shares to existing shareholders and granting them more leeway on pricing, he said.