MiniMax soars 78% on first day of HK trade

MiniMax Group, the second so-called Chinese “AI tiger” to go public, rocketed 78% higher on its first day of Hong Kong trade yesterday, outshining fellow tiger Zhipu Al as investors clamoured fora piece ofa startup with popular consumer apps.

- YANTOULTRA NGUI KANE WU LIAM MO

The listing by MiniMax, which raised HK$4.8 billion ($620 million) in its IPO to fund research and development, follows a solid 13% climb in Thursday's debut by Zhipu AL.

MiniMax shares were last trading at HK$294 per share, versus the offer price of HK$165.00, valuing the company at about $11.6 billion. At one point, the shares rose as high as HK$299.

“MiniMax's focus on the consumer market appealed more to investors seeking high-growth opportunities, whereas Zhipu’s enterpriseand government-oriented model was perceived as more stable but less exciting ina market driven by hype, said Lian Jye Su, chief analyst at tech research firm Omdia.