The year 2025 for A-share IPOs can be characterized by "two increases and one decrease." If 2024 was a year of seeking new directions amidst reform for the A-share IPO market, then 2025 saw overall stable IPO activity, with acceptance, review, and issuance rhythms normalizing, while capital market resources increasingly accelerated their aggregation towards "new quality productive forces." According to statistics compiled from exchange websites and Wind data, the IPO landscape in 2025 presented a pattern of "two increases and one decrease": a substantial rise in the number of accepted applications, with the Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing Stock Exchanges collectively accepting 251 IPO applications, a figure 3.26 times that of 2024; a significant increase in the number of companies approved by listing committees, with 109 companies successfully passing their reviews throughout the year, more than double last year's count; and a sharp reduction in withdrawal numbers, with a cumulative total of 95 companies terminating their applications for review, a substantial 77% decrease compared to the same period last year. Based on statistics, the Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing Stock Exchanges collectively accepted 251 corporate IPO applications in 2025, which is 3.26 times the number accepted in 2024. Looking back at 2024, IPO financing tightened significantly, leading to a sharp drop in accepted applications, with only 77 receiving new acceptance for the entire year; over 80% of these were accepted by the Beijing Stock Exchange, while the numbers for the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges were only in the single digits. Entering 2025, IPO acceptance normalized, with the Shanghai Exchange accepting 60 applications in total, the Shenzhen Exchange accepting 55, and the Beijing Stock Exchange accepting 136. Broken down by target listing board, the Main Board saw 29 acceptances, the STAR Market 44, the ChiNext Board 42, and the Beijing Stock Exchange 136. June and December were the peak periods for IPO acceptances during the year. In June 2025, the three exchanges collectively accepted IPO applications from 150 companies, accounting for 60% of the annual total; another 46 were accepted in a concentrated manner in December, with a particular surge occurring in the latter half of the month. In practice, June and December are typically peak periods for IPO acceptances, driven primarily by the validity period of financial reports. Most companies planning an IPO choose December 31st as the reporting benchmark date for their application, disclosing financial statements for three full fiscal years; these financial statements remain valid for six months after the cutoff date. Consequently, most applicants choose to submit their applications in a rush before the end of June to avoid subsequently having to supplement and update financial data, thereby securing a longer validity period for their IPO process. Companies applying between October and December mostly use June 30th as their IPO reporting benchmark date. In terms of fundraising amounts, China Resources New Energy Holdings Limited, accepted on the Shenzhen Main Board, had the highest proposed fundraising amount at 24.5 billion yuan; followed by PowerChina New Energy Group Co., Ltd., aiming to raise 9 billion yuan; additionally, HKC Corporation Limited planned to raise 8.5 billion yuan. Regarding industry distribution, among the companies accepted this year, those from the manufacturing sector led in application numbers. Specifically, sub-sectors such as chemicals, industrial machinery, electronic equipment/instruments/components, semiconductor products, semiconductor materials/equipment, electrical components/equipment, and auto parts/equipment accounted for a relatively high proportion, reflecting the capital market's increasing support for the real economy and technology innovation enterprises. In 2025, 117 companies seeking initial public offerings went before listing committees for review. Among them, 109 companies successfully passed, a number more than double that of 2024 (53 companies); the pass rate reached 93%, comparable to the previous year. The specific breakdown of approved companies includes 28 for the Main Board, 18 for the STAR Market, 14 for the ChiNext Board, and 49 for the Beijing Stock Exchange. Among these, 62 of the approved companies had already achieved their IPOs within the year. Notably, Dapu Microelectronics, as the first unprofitable company to pursue an IPO on the ChiNext Board, successfully passed its review on December 25th, reflecting the board's support for high-quality innovative enterprises. In June of this year, the ChiNext Board officially implemented listing standards for unprofitable companies, supporting the listing of high-quality, yet unprofitable, innovative firms. Following Dapu Microelectronics, another unprofitable company, Yuexin Semiconductor, had its IPO application accepted on December 19th. In July, the supporting rules for the STAR Market's "1+6" policy package were implemented, directly addressing the core challenges and growth patterns of technology innovation enterprises, applying differentiated and unified supervision to unprofitable listed companies, and enhancing the capital market's adaptability and support effectiveness for technological innovation. Market observers noted that supporting the listing of high-quality, unprofitable innovative companies helps to further increase the inclusiveness, adaptability, and targeted support of the boards for quality tech firms, guiding more advanced production factors towards the technology sector and promoting a high-level cycle between technology, capital, and industry. In the long run, this is also expected to help further improve market structure, strengthen the distinctive attributes of the boards, enhance the quality of listed companies, and increase the intrinsic stability of the market. From the perspective of sponsoring institutions, Guotai Junan Securities, Haitong Securities, China Securities, and CITIC Securities ranked in the top three by the number of companies they sponsored (including joint sponsorships) that passed reviews, with 15, 12, and 11 instances respectively, establishing a commanding lead over other institutions. Following last year's record high number of IPO application terminations, withdrawal activity this year has noticeably stabilized and shown a month-by-month declining trend. Terminations peaked at 26 in January, dropped to 11 in February, and remained in the single digits for the subsequent ten months, with only 3 companies terminating their applications for review in each of the final three months. The cumulative number of companies terminating their review applications for the full year was 95, a sharp 77% decrease compared to the same period last year. Among the terminated applications, 22 companies had already passed their listing committee reviews, a number also significantly lower than the 66 recorded last year. Additionally, 7 companies terminated their registration process this year, effectively failing at the final hurdle before listing. Among these, 3 were targeting the Beijing Stock Exchange, while 2 each were aiming for the Main Board and the ChiNext Board; the longest queuing time among them reached 1,110 days. Tan Gefei, Chief Consulting Expert at Shenzhen Elephant Investment Advisory Co., Ltd., believes that even after undergoing multiple rounds of inquiry and successfully passing the listing committee review, companies ultimately choose to withdraw their applications due to prolonged registration processes, changes in the market environment, or internal corporate adjustments. Common issues leading to withdrawal typically include failure to meet financial data standards, legal risks and compliance problems, and insufficient information disclosure. "These cases indicate that during the IPO process, companies not only need to meet strict financial and compliance requirements but also navigate market fluctuations. In the future, companies planning to list will need to pay greater attention to internal control construction, business sustainability, and the timing of market entry to improve their chances of a successful IPO," he said. Furthermore, according to Wind statistics, as of December 30, 2025, there were a total of 297 companies still in the IPO pipeline. Among these, the number of companies aiming to list on the Beijing Stock Exchange was the highest, at 173, accounting for nearly 60% of the total; followed by 42 companies targeting the Main Board; there were 42 companies queued for the ChiNext Board and 40 for the STAR Market. Among the companies in the IPO queue, those based in Guangdong Province were the most numerous, totaling 61; followed by 52 from Jiangsu Province and 46 from Zhejiang Province.
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