Ten and a half months after completing the filing for guidance in the ChiEx market, a connector company in Shenzhen changed its listing target to the Beijing Stock Exchange. During the same period, another connector factory completed its three-year guidance process, replaced its brokerage firm, and re-focused on the ChiEx market. Neither of them was rejected; they simply changed their paths.
Over the past two years, the entry points for IPOs in the A-share market have been tightening. The difficulty of listing in the connector industry has been evident for a long time.
01
Ten and a half months of guidance
Why did it suddenly switch to the NEEQ?
Shenzhen Shengling Electronics mainly engages in the business of connectors, and most of its products are used in data communication, with a focus on data center servers. Its competitors include Weifeng Electronics, Ruicai, Dingtong Technology, and Zhonghang Optics.
Shengling Electronics has not been the first to attempt an IPO on the ChiNext. As early as May 19, 2023, its first ChiNext IPO application was accepted by the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, with the underwriter being Shenwan Hongyuan; on June 14, it received the first round of review inquiries, and then received the second round of inquiries. However, due to a decline in net profit in 2023, which was lower than expected, the original underwriter submitted an application to withdraw, and on June 4, 2024, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange terminated its IPO review.
Subsequently, the company initiated a new round of guidance. On October 16, 2025, it signed a guidance agreement with Industrial Securities, and on October 28, it completed the registration of the ChiNext listing guidance. On September 15, 2026, the company completed the change of the listing section, from the ChiNext of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange to the NEEQ, and the guidance institution did not change. During this new guidance period, the company did not receive inquiries or be rejected, but Shengling Electronics changed the target board.
Just after the switch, the progress bar was refreshed again: On October 12, 2026, Shengling Electronics was listed on the Innovation Layer of the National Equities Exchange and Quotations, with the stock code 875218. However, switching to the NEEQ does not mean that it can immediately go public. According to relevant rules, the company still needs to meet requirements such as continuous listing time and registration review: The listing rules of the NEEQ require that the issuer has been continuously listed on the National Equities Exchange and Quotations for 12 months.
The performance is good. In 2024 and 2025, the company’s operating income was 383 million yuan and 545 million yuan respectively, with a year-on-year growth of 42.11%; the non-GAAP net profit was 60.255 million yuan and 71.5799 million yuan, with a growth of approximately 18.8%, which meets the threshold of the NEEQ. However, in the same year, the comprehensive gross profit margin dropped from 34.44% to 29.61%, a decrease of 4.83 percentage points; the accounts receivable increased from 112 million yuan to 155 million yuan. The revenue growth exceeded 40%, but the non-GAAP net profit growth was less than 20%, and the profitability quality behind the revenue expansion deserves continued attention.
There are also other companies that changed their paths (such as Shunke Zhilian, 874986), which produce connectors and connection bus bars, with the downstream being new energy vehicles, rail transit, and energy storage. Its guidance agreement was signed with Guangfa Securities on August 25, 2023 – two days later, on August 27, the China Securities Regulatory Commission announced a phased tightening of the IPO pace. The agreement was signed for nearly three years, and on July 31, 2026, both parties terminated it, and on August 10, it signed a new agreement with Dongguan Securities, this time stating “listed on the ChiNext”. The three-year guidance did not result in a submission for listing or a rejection.
On the same road, some have already passed. Jiangsu Yute Optics produces fiber optic connectors, and on October 9, 2026, it was listed on the NEEQ; in Shenzhen, Aide Tai produces high-density fiber optic connectors for data centers, and on May 15, 2026, it directly submitted an application for listing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
So the reading of this list is not the same: It is not a group of companies colliding against the same wall, but a group of companies changing their paths during the same period. So, how was this wall built?
02
The number of IPO withdrawals has dropped by nearly 50%.
How come going public has become even more difficult now?
In August 2023, the China Securities Regulatory Commission began to tighten the IPO pace. In April 2024, the new “National Nine Measures” included “Strictly controlling the admission criteria for issuance and listing” in the regulations. The first thing to change was the data.
As of July 15, 2026, there were 40 companies in the A-share market that had terminated their IPO processes, which was nearly 50% less than the 74 companies in the same period in 2025. And all of them were either the issuers or the underwriters who voluntarily withdrew. By sector, 23 of the 40 companies were from the Beijing Stock Exchange, accounting for nearly 60%. According to the broader statistics from Wind, since 2026, there have been 73 projects that were withdrawn or rejected, among which 58 companies from the materials, industrial, and information technology sectors accounted for nearly 80%.
That is to say, the number of withdrawals has decreased, but it doesn’t mean the door has opened wider. What’s more crucial is that the rules themselves have changed. The “Initial Public Offering Inspection Regulations” issued by the China Securities Regulatory Commission in 2024 clearly state: After the inspection objects are determined, even if the enterprise withdraws its application, it will not affect the implementation of the inspection, nor will it affect the handling of the problems found. Withdrawal is no longer a free pass – but this does not mean that once withdrawn, it will definitely be selected for on-site inspection.
The threshold is not simply narrowed; it has changed direction. On June 18, 2025, the “1+6” reform for the Science and Technology Innovation Board was implemented, establishing the Science and Technology Growth Layer and restarting the fifth listing standard. One year after the implementation, there were 56 new applications for IPOs on the Science and Technology Innovation Board, among which 25 were unprofitable companies, accounting for over 40%, and 8 unprofitable companies were listed. In June 2026, the application scope of the fifth standard was expanded to artificial intelligence; in June 2025, the third standard was launched on ChiNext.
Whether one can make a profit is no longer the only measure; “whether it is a hard technology and whether it can be sustained” is gaining more weight. Sheng Ling Electronics’ relocation to the Beijing Stock Exchange is another way of expressing this: “Which sector do you belong to? ” was asked even earlier. So, for connector companies that are not yet listed or want to expand production after listing， where else can they get the money？
03
Apart from IPO
What other paths are available?
A senior executive of a connector listed company told “International Cable & Connector” : Besides IPO, there are several other ways for connector enterprises to raise funds:
The first path is for listed companies to continue refinancing. This method is faster for well-regulated companies. Before the Spring Festival of 2026, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange launched a package of measures to optimize refinancing; Xinfu Communication completed a fixed asset investment of no more than 6 billion yuan “quickly” , with the investment direction mainly targeting satellite communication devices, radio frequency devices, and chip heat dissipation devices.
In the connector industry, there are many examples.
Ricai (688800) issued no more than 1 billion yuan of convertible bonds in November 2025. In the past five years since its listing, it raised approximately 406 million yuan in the initial public offering, 683 million yuan through fixed asset investment in 2022, and 1 billion yuan through convertible bonds in 2025, totaling approximately 20.89 billion yuan, which is about 5.1 times the initial public offering.
Dingtong Technology (688668) has issued 930 million yuan of convertible bonds and was listed on the stock market on July 17, 2026. It invests in high-speed communication and liquid cooling CAGE, and new energy BMS structural components.
Hua Feng Technology (688629) completed the fundraising of 972.4 million yuan through fixed asset investment in May 2026, mainly for the expansion of high-speed module production.
The second path is to sell oneself to a listed company. Huaxing Cable (001208) used a combination of “cash + targeted convertible bonds” to acquire the equity of Anhui Sanzhu, an industrial connector enterprise: It has already cash-acquired 35% of the equity, corresponding to the valuation of the target 100% equity at 263 million yuan (valuation increase rate 190.52%), and plans to acquire the remaining 35% through targeted convertible bonds and raise 40 million yuan. The benefit of installment payment is very direct: less cash pressure, and the original shareholders are still tied to the subsequent performance.
The third path is to list in another market. Shenzhen’s Aode Tai produces optical fiber connectors and submitted an application for listing on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on May 15, 2026; from 2023 to 2025, its revenue increased from 500 million yuan to 2.105 billion yuan, and net profit increased from 121 million yuan to 624 million yuan. The company hired Guoxin Securities for guidance in 2024, but has never submitted a formal application on the A-share market – it placed its first stop at the Hong Kong stock market.
The fourth path is to enter the tiered market: list on the basic layer of the New Third Board, enter the selected layer, and then enter the Beijing Stock Exchange. Sanyuan Genes (2016) listed on the basic layer, entered the selected layer in 2021, and was listed on the Beijing Stock Exchange in the first batch of listings. In 2026, it initiated a simplified procedure for refinancing plan. There are also debt and policy tools – bank credit, science and technology bonds, government guiding funds, local “specialized and innovative” special boards, and strategic investment in the primary market.
Another connector industry professional said: There seem to be many paths, but each has different costs. For refinancing, one needs to have the status of a listed company, for acquisition, one needs to give up control rights, for listing in the Hong Kong stock market, one has to face a different investor structure, for the tiered market, one needs to first build a solid performance and compliance record.
Conclusion
The changes in the ease of listing do not lie in the opening and closing of the gates, but in the shift of the criteria for what constitutes a “good company”, and also in the question of “which sector do you belong to” being asked in advance.
The number of cancellations has decreased, which is often misinterpreted as a relaxation of the threshold. The connector is in the middle: it is neither the AI hard technology that is prioritized and encouraged, nor the backward production capacity that is being phased out.
Sheng Ling Electronics redirected to the NEEQ, Shun Ke Zhi Liang changed the brokerage firm, neither of them were rejected, and they did it by changing their own paths; Aide Tai talked about “AI data center optical interconnection” and went to the Hong Kong stock market, taking the broader path.