May2019
A world-class Chinese semiconductor industry would change everything. Still, China has been trying to develop a homegrown chip industry for decades and has little to show for its efforts.
Comprehensive Contestations (2015-2018): In part sparked by a joint letter issued by a dozen scholars requesting the country renew its support for semiconductors, China’s leadership recommitted to building a domestic chip industry. In 2014, the government set up the National IC Industry Fund, often referred to as the “big fund,” which the author believes will completely change the Chinese and global semiconductor industry over the next three years.
The National IC Fund adopts a different approach to supporting the semiconductor industry: “1) It seeks to support strong companies in the field, including the three industry leaders, providing them with opportunities to receive state funding. 2) The equity investment arrangement was designed to generally not interfere with the production and operations, ensuring the independence of the companies receiving state financing.”
Another major change: China’s top chip firms are now willing and able to pay top dollar for talent. “The industrialization of chips requires relying on top engineers that ask for millions of dollars in annual salary, rather than pinning their hopes on the selfless dedication of thousands of old experts who ride their bikes to and from work.”
https://chinai.substack.com/p/chinai-56-the-sour-past-of-china
Original
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/r6M5oEKecjOAGYds7beMhQ
A $29 billion fund would help.
A selloff in dollar bonds issued by two Chinese university-backed companies has revived concerns about the finances of such firms, as well as the strength of state support.
In the past week, investors have dumped dollar debt issued by subsidiaries of Tsinghua University and Peking University, the country’s top two tertiary institutions, pushing prices to record lows.
The financial woes affecting the two companies, one of them a leading semiconductor producer, highlight the risk arising from the murky regulatory oversight of a relatively obscure corner in China Inc.
The plunge shows a worrying loss of confidence for companies such as Tsinghua Unigroup Co., which is tasked with helping President Xi Jinping achieve his goal of challenging the U.S.’s global dominance in technology.