(Yicai) July 8 -- Chengxin Memory Technology, a Chinese dynamic random-access memory chip supplier, has initiated the so-called ‘counseling process’ for an initial public offering.

CXMT hired state-owned firms China International Capital Corporation and China Securities as advisors for the listing, according to a notice released on the official website of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

The CSRC notice did not include any further details about the IPO, including where and when CXMT will go public, but according to general information, the process should take between one and three years.

Founded in 2016, CXMT researches, designs, produces, and sells DRAM products. It has no controller, but its largest shareholder, Hefei Qinghui Power Gathering Enterprise Management Partnership Enterprise (Limited Partnership), directly holds 21.7 percent of its outstanding shares.

CXMT completed its last financing round in March last year, raising CNY10.8 billion (USD1.5 billion) , after its estimated valuation before the investment was set at CNY150.8 billion (USD21 billion).

Even though overseas firms dominate the global DRAM and not-and flash memory markets, Chinese companies, including CXMT, are actively working to enhance their capabilities.

According to the latest report from research firm Counterpoint, CXMT’s shares of the DDR5 and LPDDR5 segments of the global DRAM market will increase to 7 percent and 9 percent, respectively, in the fourth quarter from under 1 percent in the first quarter.

Of the memory chips the Chinese RAM stick makers use at the moment, about 80 percent to 90 percent are imported, a sales manager at a RAM stick firm told Yicai. However, the proportion of domestic memory chips is steadily increasing.

The sales manager said that her company previously used mostly Samsung memory chips, but as the yield of Chinese memory chips has improved, it started to allocate a certain procurement ratio for domestic chips in every project since last year, the company also prioritize the use of domestic chips for new projects.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione