Tech Giants: Starting from Bankrupt Companies

82: Chapter 82: The Pinnacle of Trillions 2Day 3: Historic Moment (August 3)

August 3, Thursday.

Market sentiment had reached a boiling point.

Spark Technology opened at 1880 rmb, 8% higher, without hitting the daily limit. This actually made the market even more excited—there was a chance to buy!

The stock price fluctuated violently after the opening. There were both profit-taking orders flooding out and more capital rushing in. Trading volume expanded sharply, exceeding the total of the previous two days within half an hour of opening.

At 11:00 AM, the stock price broke through 1900 rmb.

At 1:30 PM, it broke through 1950 rmb.

All trading software and financial websites placed Spark Technology’s trend chart in the most prominent position. Countless eyes were fixed on that constantly jumping number.

At 2:20 PM, the stock price touched 1999.99 rmb.

The market held its breath.

At 2:21 PM, a buy order of 1000 lots pushed the price to 2000.00 rmb.

”Ding—”

Countless trading software simultaneously popped up a market-wide announcement window:

”Warm congratulations to Spark Technology for its stock price breaking through the 2000 rmb integer mark, and the company’s total market value exceeding 2 trillion rmb! It has become the fourth company in A-share history to exceed a trillion in market value, following Kweichow Moutai, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and China Construction Bank, and it is also the only technology manufacturing enterprise!”

At Xinghuo Headquarters, on the top floor office.

On the giant screen wall, the left side displayed real-time stock price trends, and the right side showed a company market value calculator. At this moment, both numbers froze:

Stock Price: 2003.50 rmb

Market Value: 2,103,675,000,000 rmb (2.1036 trillion)

Rounded, 2.1 trillion.

Lin Wan stood beside Su Chen and said softly, ”It’s two trillion.”

Her voice was calm, but if one listened carefully, a faint, imperceptible tremor could be heard. It wasn’t excitement, but a huge, almost unreal sense of weight.

Su Chen didn’t look at the screen; he gazed at the Shenzhen skyline outside the window. The sun was bright, and the glass curtain wall reflected dazzling light.

”This time last year,” he said slowly, ”we were still losing sleep all night because the first tape-out of ’flint one’ failed and the chip supply might be cut off.”

One year. From the brink of despair to the peak of trillions.

Shen Nanpeng pushed the door open, holding a summary of the trading data he had just printed. His expression was more solemn than in the previous few days.

”The three-day data is out.” He placed the file on the table. ”There’s a problem, and it’s more serious than we imagined.”

The Depletion of Tradable Shares

The document contained cold, hard numbers:

Total share capital: 1.05 billion shares

Tradable shares: 135.7 million shares (accounting for 12.92%)

Non-tradable/restricted shares: 914.3 million shares

Three-day trading details:

August 1: 865,000 shares traded, turnover rate 0.64%

August 2: 3,127,000 shares traded, turnover rate 2.30% (including institutional block trades)

August 3: 2,832,000 shares traded, turnover rate 2.09%

Three-day cumulative turnover rate: 5.03%

This meant that over 94% of the shares had not been traded at all during these three days.

”The top ten shareholders hold 86.43%.” Shen Nanpeng pointed to another table. ”Among them, you, Su Chen, personally hold 678.8 million shares, accounting for 64.65%, with a market value of 1.36 trillion. This portion is committed to a three-year lock-up and cannot be sold.”

”Spark Trust holds 9.05%, and most of it still has a one-year lock-up period.”

”SASAC accounts for 5%, which is a strategic holding and will not be moved.”

”The other two, Huawei and Shenzhen Metro, account for 4.76%, and they are basically locked up too.”

He concluded, ”The shares that are truly freely tradable in the market might be less than 120 million. Corresponding to today’s stock price of 2000 rmb, the tradable market value is only 240 billion.”

Lin Wan immediately realized the problem: ”That is to say, pushing the stock price to 2000 rmb only actually used a small portion of the market’s capital. If... if the holders of these chips sell them off collectively...”

”The stock price will collapse,” Shen Nanpeng continued. ”It doesn’t take much volume at all. The capital available to absorb 20 billion in sell orders daily is limited. Once the daily sell orders exceed 30 billion, even the daily limit won’t hold.”

He pulled up a simulated stress test chart: ”We built a model. Assuming 30% of the holders of tradable shares wanted to sell simultaneously for any reason (profit-taking, panic, external shorting), it would require nearly 80 billion in capital to absorb it. And according to the current market capital situation, this is almost impossible.”

The office fell into silence.

The magnificent building of a two-trillion market value was built on a foundation of extremely scarce tradable chips. It was like a reservoir with a majestic dam, but the flood discharge gate was pitifully small. Once a flood came, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Act 3: Undercurrents Beneath the Noise

The Bipolar Narrative of the Media

That evening, the media presented a scene of stark contrast.

CCTV Finance Channel produced a forty-minute special, ”From ST to Two Trillion, What Did Spark Do Right?”. The film started from 2015 when Spark was on the verge of bankruptcy, interspersed with classic scenes such as the drone launch, the Divine Travel battery test, and the tears of old Red Flag workers, finally ending with Su Chen’s quote, ”Technology has no borders, but the people behind technology have a motherland.” The conclusion was full of emotion: ”Spark proves that the real economy + technological innovation is the most solid foundation for the Huaxia economy. This is not only a commercial success but also a victory of spirit.”

Huaxia Daily published a commentator’s article on the front page, titled ”Looking Up at the Starry Sky, Keeping Feet on the Ground—Looking at the Future of Huaxia Manufacturing from Spark.” The article wrote: ”A two-trillion market value is the best reward for those who persist in independent innovation. It tells us that only by keeping the core lifeblood in our own hands can the road become wider.”

But not all voices were so optimistic.

A well-known overseas financial media outlet published a long analysis with a sharp title: ”Behind the Two-Trillion Market Value: Questioning the Sustainability of a 40% Net Profit Margin.” The article detailed the profit margins of global tech giants: Apple has long maintained around 25%, Tesla only barely turned positive after scaling up, and Samsung Electronics is in the 15%-20% range. The conclusion was: ”Spark’s 40% net profit margin is more like a product of a special period—the dividends of domestic substitution, industry explosion windows, and the blank market left by sanctioned competitors. When these special factors fade, such a high profit margin will be unsustainable.”

An analyst in China known for being independent and outspoken wrote in a personal column: ”When a company’s market value is equal to the sum of the market values of the 100 listed companies behind it in its industry, we need to think: is this the beginning of greatness, or the peak of a bubble? History has told us countless times that in the capital market, stories that are too perfect often hide the greatest risks.”

Public sentiment was more straightforward.

Chinese microblogging platform trending topic #1: #SparkMarketValueTwoTrillion#, with 830 million reads.

The most popular comment below was liked over a million times:

”I used to think Moutai was unsurpassable, but now I find that technology is the true king. A trillion achieved by drinking, and a trillion achieved by working, are ultimately different.”

Below this comment were tens of thousands of arguments.

Su Chen’s Moment of Sobriety

At 8:00 PM, the noise gradually subsided.

Su Chen, Lin Wan, and Shen Nanpeng held a small meeting in the office. No assistants, no minutes, just the three of them.

Shen Nanpeng spoke first: ”The current situation is that market sentiment has been completely ignited. But our pool of tradable shares is too shallow, which is a huge hidden danger. The faster the stock price rises, the greater the risk of a future decline.”

Lin Wan added: ”Employee sentiment also needs attention. Although most of the lock-up periods for shareholdings haven’t expired, seeing paper wealth skyrocket inevitably makes some people’s mindsets waver. We need stable expectation management.”

After listening, Su Chen drank a sip of water in silence. Spread out before him were three documents: the original financial report, the three-day trading data, and a research report titled ”History of Market Value Changes of Global Tech Giants.”

”You are both right,” he finally said. ”Market value is a result, not a goal. Everyone is praising us now, and this is when it’s easiest to make mistakes.”

He made his decision:

”First, Nanpeng, you lead the feasibility study for refinancing. Not now, but research in advance. Consider methods including private placement, convertible bonds, or spinning off subsidiaries for listing. The goal is not to raise cash, but to moderately increase the proportion of tradable shares and improve the equity structure. The plan must be robust and cannot impact the existing stock price.”

Shen Nanpeng nodded: ”Understood. I will organize a team and proceed quietly.”

”Second, Wan’er, prepare to execute the 2016 annual dividend plan.” Su Chen looked at Lin Wan. ”Based on 10% of net profit, the dividend per share should be no less than 4.5 rmb, with a total dividend amount of about 4.6 billion. Do it quickly, and complete it before the third-quarter financial report.”

Lin Wan was a bit surprised: ”The market is currently looking at growth. Won’t dividends be interpreted as a lack of growth?”

”That’s exactly the signal I want to send,” Su Chen said. ”Spark is not a brute that only knows how to burn money for expansion. We respect shareholder returns, our financial situation is healthy, and we have the capacity to reward investors. This can reassure some long-term investors who pursue stable cash flow and reduce their motivation for short-term selling.”

He paused and continued: ”Third, and most importantly—unify the external message. Starting tomorrow, all executives accepting interviews should only talk about business, technology, and customers, and never discuss stock price or market value. If anyone asks, the standard answer is: ’Management is focused on the company’s long-term development; the stock price is determined by the market.’”

Shen Nanpeng and Lin Wan exchanged glances, both seeing approval in each other’s eyes. Maintaining calm in the midst of frenzy and seeing risks at the peak—this is what a helmsman should be like.

”One more thing,” Su Chen said finally, his voice very low. ”Notify the information security department to raise the alert level. At two trillion, we have become the biggest target. People who want us to fall, both openly and secretly, will be ten times more than before.”

Shadows from Afar

At the same time, New York, Midtown Manhattan, an office of a hedge fund.

Outside the window was a brilliant night view; inside, only a few screens were lit. On the largest screen was the K-line chart of Spark Technology for the last month, the steep upward curve specifically marked with a thick red line.

Next to the chart was a sticky note with a few English words handwritten on it: ”Short Candidate.”

Fund manager Michael Rosen, forty-five years old, bald, wearing rimless glasses, was speaking into the phone: ”Yes, the valuation has completely escaped gravity. The P/E ratio is over 45 times, and the P/S ratio is 20 times. Even the most optimistic growth expectations cannot support this price.”

On the other end of the line was his analyst team.

”There are three catalysts,” Rosen continued, his tone cold and precise. ”First, the failure of the Red Flag Automobile integration. The difficulty of heavy industry transformation far exceeds that of consumer electronics. Once huge losses or labor conflicts occur, market confidence will collapse. Second, chip yields are below expectations. 28nm is fine, but 16nm and 7nm are another world. One failed tape-out is enough to shatter the ’technology myth.’ Third, global escalation of sanctions. This is a political risk, but it is also the most fatal one.”

He walked to the window, overlooking the lights of New York: ”First, build a position in put options, with a maturity of six months to one year. Don’t make the position too large; this is a test. Wait for their third-quarter financial report; as long as the growth slows down—even slightly—market sentiment will reverse. That is when we will enter the market in a big way.”

Washington, a small seminar at a well-known think tank had just ended.

The topic was: ”Spark Technology’s Two-Trillion Market Value: The Security Threat of Techno-Nationalism to the Global Supply Chain.”

The participants included former government officials, researchers with military backgrounds, and consultants from Silicon Valley. The conference room was filled with smoke, and the atmosphere was heavy.

The final conclusion was compiled into a briefing, which was about to be sent to some key offices. The core recommendations of the briefing read:

”Spark’s vertical integration capabilities in key areas (5G, chips, batteries, new materials) have constituted a strategic challenge. Recommendations: First, unite allies to implement stricter embargoes on high-end equipment required for its chip manufacturing (lithography machines, etching machines, etc.); Second, restrict its channels for obtaining special materials (high-purity wafers, special gases, etc.); Third, set obstacles to its overseas expansion and talent acquisition on a global scale.”

A former official said to his companion as the meeting dispersed: ”Sometimes, being too successful is in itself an original sin.”

A Night for a Retail Investor

Shanghai Municipality, an ordinary old residential compound.

Wang Jianguo, fifty-five years old, a retired mechanical engineer, was sitting in his simple study filled with technical books. The light from the computer screen reflected on his graying hair and deeply wrinkled face.

On the screen was his stock account.

Holdings: Spark Technology, 14,400 shares.

Current price: 2003.50 rmb.

Holding market value: 28,850,400 rmb.

He trembled as he picked up the reading glasses on the table and looked at the number again. 28,850,400 rmb.

Then he picked up his phone and dialed his son’s number. His son worked at an internet company in Beijing and often worked overtime until late at night.

The phone rang seven or eight times before it was answered: ”Dad? It’s so late, is something wrong?”

Wang Jianguo’s voice was also shaking: ”Son, Dad might... be financially free.”

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds: ”Dad, what are you saying? Did you win the lottery?”

”It’s not the lottery... it’s stocks. Spark Technology, do you remember? I... I bought a lot.”

”Spark?” His son’s voice instantly became alert. ”The one you’ve been constantly talking about? The one that rose to 2000?”

”Yes.” Wang Jianguo looked at the screen. ”My cost... was 1 rmb. Now, it’s over 28 million.”

A long half-minute of silence. The son was digesting this information.

”Dad,” his son finally spoke, his voice very careful, ”are you... planning to sell?”

Wang Jianguo didn’t answer immediately. He moved the mouse and clicked on a bookmarked video—a clip of Su Chen’s speech at the Flint chip launch. In the video, Su Chen said: ”What we need to do is to ensure Huaxia manufacturing has a Huaxia chip.”

He looked again at an old photo next to the computer. It was a photo of him in his youth, in the workshop of a machine tool factory, with his master. Behind them was an old-fashioned lathe, and on the wall was written ”Self-reliance.”

”Not selling.” Wang Jianguo said to the phone, his voice suddenly becoming firm. ”I’ll keep this stock for you. As a family heirloom.”

He paused and added: ”This isn’t about the money. This is... Dad has believed in technology, believed in industry, and believed that we Huaxia people can create good things all my life. This stock proves that Dad didn’t believe wrong.”

After hanging up the phone, Wang Jianguo closed the stock software. He opened a blank document and started typing. The title was: ”Some Experiences on Thermal Deformation Compensation of Large Gantry Milling Machines—Dedicated to the Young Engineers of the New Shenyang Machine Tool.”

Outside the window, Shanghai’s night was filled with flickering lights.

And at the peak of trillions, Spark, under the moonlight, shone with a dazzling yet somewhat lonely light.

Ahead was a wider sky, and also more violent winds.