MiniMax tests Hong Kong appetite with $2 billion AI funding deal

A quick return to public investors

MiniMax Group is seeking fresh capital only months after its Hong Kong listing, joining a burst of Chinese AI financing deals aimed at paying for costly model development. The company is looking to raise as much as about $2 billion through new shares and convertible bonds, with the transaction expected to test how much dilution investors will accept in exchange for exposure to China’s AI buildoutreuters +1.

The equity portion would sell 35.6 million shares at HK$268 each, raising HK$9.5 billion and pricing the stock at roughly a 9.9% discount to Thursday’s close in Hong Kongreuters. MiniMax is also offering HK$6.5 billion of zero-coupon convertible bonds due in 2027, with the notes carrying a 25% conversion premium under deal terms reported by Bloombergreuters.

AI demand meets valuation pressure

The deal arrives after a volatile first stretch as a public company. MiniMax raised about HK$4.82 billion, or roughly $619 million, in its January Hong Kong IPO, and its shares surged 109% on their debut before later sliding as early-investor lockups expiredbloomberg. The stock has dropped 78% from a March peak, with investors questioning the competitiveness and pricing power of its models after the company cut the price of its most advanced model by half in Junetheasset.

That tension explains why the financing matters beyond one issuer. Large language models and multimodal systems require heavy spending on computing capacity, talent and infrastructure, while U.S. chip restrictions can raise costs for Chinese developersbloomberg. Goldman Sachs turned more positive on MiniMax on Friday, saying its valuation looked attractive and its model had good cost efficiency, but the new share supply still adds a near-term overhangtheasset.

Hong Kong’s AI pipeline is getting crowded

MiniMax is tapping markets as rivals and adjacent chip companies line up their own deals. Zhipu AI is seeking about $4 billion through a Hong Kong share placement after its stock surged nearly 1,500% since a January listing, while Nexchip, Iluvatar CoreX and Biren Technology have also advanced sizeable fundraising plansasiatechdaily. The Edge reported that Zhipu’s sale would be the second-biggest Hong Kong equity offering this year, while Biren recently launched a $901 million placement and CXMT prepared investor subscriptions for a $4.3 billion offeringtheasset.

The broader funding backdrop remains supportive but more selective. Chinese AI-related start-ups raised more than 110 billion yuan, or $16.2 billion, in the first quarter, up 185% from a year earlier, with capital concentrated in large language models, robotics and computing infrastructurereuters. For MiniMax, the market signal from this deal will be whether investors still view AI capital intensity as a growth moat — or as a cash drain that demands a steeper discount.