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China sets up third fund with $47.5b to boost semiconductor sector
China sees more need to achieve self-sufficiency in semiconductors after the US imposed a series of export control measures over the last couple of years.
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Employees work at a semiconductor chips factory in Huai'an, in eastern China's Jiangsu province, on April 29, 2024. (AFP/STR)
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hina has set up its third planned state-backed investment fund to boost its semiconductor industry, with a registered capital of 344 billion yuan (US$47.5 billion), according to a filing with a government-run companies registry.
President Xi Jinping has stressed the need for China to achieve self-sufficiency in semiconductors. That need has increased after the US has imposed a series of export control measures over the last couple of years, citing fears that Beijing could use advanced chips to boost its military capabilities.
The third phase of the China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund was officially established on May 24 and registered under the Beijing Municipal Administration for Market Regulation, according to the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, a government-run credit information agency.
The third phase will be the largest of the three funds launched by the China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund, known as the "Big Fund."
China's finance ministry is the biggest shareholder with a 17 percent stake and paid-in capital of 60 billion yuan, according to Tianyancha, a Chinese companies information database company. China Development Bank Capital is the second-largest shareholder with a 10.5 percent stake.
The Finance Ministry didn't immediately reply to Reuters request for comment
Seventeen other entities are listed as investors, including five major Chinese banks: Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, and Bank of Communications, with each contributing around 6 percent of the total capital.
Reuters reported in September that China would launch the third phase of the Big Fund.
The first phase of the fund was established in 2014 with registered capital of 138.7 billion yuan, and the second phase followed in 2019 with 204 billion yuan.
The Big Fund has provided financing to China's two biggest chip foundries, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, and Hua Hong Semiconductor, as well as to Yangtze Memory Technologies, a maker of flash memory and a number of smaller companies and funds.
One of the major areas the third phase of the fund will focus on is equipment for chip manufacturing, Reuters reported in September. Also, the Big Fund is considering hiring at least two institutions to invest the capital from the third phase.
