Another company has entered the IPO race in the card game sector.
On the first trading day of the year, Suplay submitted its listing application to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Suplay is an IP collectibles and consumer goods company founded in 2019, operating a portfolio of brands including the card brand 'Kakawow', the trendy toy brand 'HeyDolls', and the 'Letao Gu' merchandise brand.
Rewinding to early 2024, when "card game leader" Cayou first filed with the Hong Kong exchange, the market widely assumed the "first card stock" title would undoubtedly go to them. However, to this day, Cayou remains silent after its second filing.
In the second half of last year, another card company, Hitcard, was also reported to be advancing its listing process.
Compared to Cayou and Hitcard, Suplay's card brand appears less prominent. In reality, it is backed by well-known game companies like miHoYo and G-bits, as well as institutions such as Source Code Capital.
The executive team also boasts deep investment industry backgrounds. Suplay founder Huang Wanjun and CFO Li Jing both previously worked at China Renaissance; Li Jing is the former CEO of venture service platform Xiaofanqian and is also married to Wang Huadong, a partner at Matrix Partners China.
Boosted by Pop Mart and Cayou successively achieving tens of billions in revenue, trendy toys and card games have become one of the few bright spots in the consumer landscape over the past year. Some have entered the former sector riding the tailwinds, while others have rushed into the latter; children might choose one or the other, but Suplay aims to capture both.
Suplay's initial trajectory was neither towards becoming like Pop Mart nor Cayou.
In its early days, Suplay positioned itself as a trendy toys platform, using the mini-program 'Suplay Chaowan' as its main channel to sell products for third-party designers.
Changes occurred with miHoYo's involvement. In 2021, Suplay received an $8 million Series A+ investment from miHoYo. That same year, Suplay began its brand transformation, including acquiring 'HeyDolls' and establishing its own brands 'Kakawow' and 'Letao Gu'.
miHoYo not only provided capital to Suplay but also brought multiple IP collaborations, such as the Slime from Genshin Impact, the Fontaine Oceanid from Genshin Impact, creations of Ruan Mei from Honkai: Star Rail, origami birds, Chimeras, and the Bumbum from Zenless Zone Zero.
Suplay categorizes its products into two main segments: collectibles and consumer-grade products. Collectibles include collectible cards and related accessories, primarily corresponding to the 'Kakawow' products; collectible accessories include card accessories, grading, authentication, and other related services.
Consumer-grade products encompass trendy toys, including figures, mini-figures, and plush toys; and IP derivatives, including Letao Gu products and retail card games among various product forms.
Suplay's initial collaboration with miHoYo focused on consumer-grade products, particularly figures, mini-figures, and plush toys. Among these, the GMV for the 'Ruan Mei's Creations' mini-figure series exceeded 50 million RMB.
While the emotional consumption driving trendy toys persists, where expressions, materials, and figure sizes can all support new business ventures—allowing Pop Mart to reach new heights with plush toys and TNT to gain fame by "making blind boxes larger"—Suplay's approach to the trendy toy space is to shrink the size.
At Pop Mart's August earnings conference, Wang Ning showcased a mini Labubu, recreating a scene of high demand. Suplay, however, started "miniaturizing" as early as April 2022, pioneering China's first mini-figure series—the KIKI Tata Lactic Acid Bacteria Candy series mini-figures. All mini-figures are scaled down to 2-2.5 cm PVC collectibles, priced at 69 RMB per bag.
Reportedly, Suplay currently owns three primary proprietary IPs: Rabbit KIKI, OHO Uncle, and Shui Bo Dan. For 2023, 2024, and the first nine months of 2025, proprietary IP products contributed approximately 40.6%, 14.4%, and 4.1% of total revenue, respectively.
According to the prospectus, Suplay's revenue grew from 146 million RMB in 2023 to 280 million RMB in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 92.5%; revenue for the first nine months of 2025 reached 283 million RMB. Net profits for 2023, 2024, and the first nine months of 2025 were 2.95 million RMB, 49.11 million RMB, and 37.07 million RMB, respectively.
Adjusted net profit surged 305% from 16 million RMB in 2023 to 64.8 million RMB in 2024; for the first nine months of 2025, this figure increased to 86.4 million RMB, an 81.9% growth compared to 47.5 million RMB in the same period of 2024.
Cayou's user base primarily consists of minors, whereas newer card brands invariably emphasize targeting adults.
Suplay is no exception. Its prospectus mentions that, according to consumer research conducted by Frost & Sullivan, 99% of its consumers are aged 18 or above. Its core consumer groups include IP series collectors, aesthetically-driven collectors, and value-oriented collectors.
Furthermore, Suplay differentiates itself by breaking the traditionally male-dominated landscape of the card game sector. Reportedly, women account for a significant 52.7% of Suplay's collectible card consumers.
Most card companies in the current market focus on collectible card games (CCGs), which are further divided into battle-type and non-battle-type cards, with the latter emphasizing collection.
Non-battle collectible cards are IP-centric card products, typically priced at 10 RMB or more per card, emphasizing scarcity and non-replicability through limited, numbered editions.
Their core value derives from IP influence, artistic design, and historical significance, possessing attributes like collectibility, display value, and secondary market circulation (some also have investment value). They primarily target core IP fans, collectors, and highly engaged consumer groups, spanning themes like sports, anime, and popular culture.
Within the broader entertainment goods market, non-battle collectible cards represent one of the fastest-growing yet least penetrated segments. The global market size was $12 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow to $25.7 billion by 2029, with a CAGR of 16.5%; the Chinese market size was 6.2 billion RMB in 2024, expected to reach 16.5 billion RMB by 2029, with a CAGR of 21.4%.
Suplay's card products are positioned in the premium segment, focusing on the collectible tier where single cards are priced above 10 RMB. According to the prospectus, these cards employ limited edition strategies, combining artistic quality with collectible value.
'This creates a significant distinction from cards priced below 10 RMB per card, which are characterized by consumption attributes, entertainment orientation, and less emphasis on grading or long-term value retention.' This positioning also boosts the gross margin for Suplay's cards, with the collectibles (cards) segment achieving a high gross margin of 69.5%.
Over the past three years, Suplay's revenue focus has shifted from trendy toys and other products towards card games.
The prospectus shows that from 2023 to the first nine months of 2025, Suplay's card game (i.e., collectibles) revenue was 47.95 million RMB, 120 million RMB, and 198 million RMB respectively, with its contribution increasing from 32.9% to 41.8%, and further to 70%. Correspondingly, the revenue share of consumer-grade products declined from 67% in 2023 to 30%, with revenues of 97.78 million RMB, 163 million RMB, and 84.86 million RMB for the respective periods.
Suplay's prospectus mentions that future IP collaborations with miHoYo will also expand to include collectible card series.
The trendy toy sector appears vibrant but the path is challenging. It took Pop Mart fifteen years to build its current successful track, and during those fifteen years, numerous followers emerged, yet "the next Pop Mart" remains elusive.
In contrast, Cayou, founded in 2018, covered in three years the distance it took Pop Mart a decade to travel.
In the past, Chinese card companies operated in obscurity, until Cayou emerged, heating up the market. Venture capital investment centered around card games spun into a frenzy. Not only Suplay, but companies like Shanhun, Jason Entertainment (Jikashe), and Hitcard have also attracted significant capital interest, drawing bets from Sequoia, Pop Mart, Yuewen, Gaorong Capital, and Gaorong Venture Capital—everyone wants a seat at the table.
More importantly, in the secondary market, no pure-play card company is currently listed, presenting opportunities not just for hot money but for potential overtaking on the curves.
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