Chinese province plans 30 bn yuan semiconductor fund to promote chip industry

China’s southern Guangdong province is planning to launch a second phase of a semiconductor fund with a scale of 30 billion yuan ($4.37 billion), state media Securities Times reported on Tuesday.

The fund will have a term of 17 years and will invest in auto chips and equipment for semiconductor material, Jin Shenghong, chairman of a trust company called Yuecai Holdings said at a semiconductor event in Guangdong on Tuesday, according to Securities Times.

The fund’s first phase, since established in 2021, has reached 31 billion yuan and has invested in 102 companies so far. Out of these firms, 19 will seek IPOs in 2023 and 2024, the report said.

China is looking to build self-reliance in key technology such as semiconductors as it faces increasing pressure from the United States, which has cited national security in restricting such Chinese industries’ access to key supply chains.

Beijing has urged that the research and development of cutting-edge technologies to be accelerated. Other funds focused on the chips industry include the China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund, also known as the “Big Fund”, which China launched in 2014. Reuters