- The AI upstart is reportedly weighing a STAR Market listing as China eases IPO rules for AI companies
- CITIC Securities has begun due diligence, but no formal sponsorship agreement has been signed, according to people familiar with the matter
DeepSeek is preparing for a potential IPO on China’s STAR Market, with CITIC Securities brought in to work on the listing, according to people familiar with the matter.
Market reports on September 9 said the AI startup had hired CITIC Securities to prepare for an IPO.
A person familiar with the company confirmed that the investment bank had been in contact with DeepSeek and had begun due diligence, although the two sides have yet to sign a formal pre-listing tutoring agreement.
Reuters separately reported that DeepSeek plans to start the IPO process this year, citing two people familiar with the matter.
The timing, fundraising size and valuation have yet to be determined. DeepSeek and CITIC Securities have not officially commented.
Under China’s listing rules, companies seeking to list on the STAR Market must appoint a sponsor and complete a regulatory guidance process that generally lasts at least three months.
DeepSeek has not yet appeared in the filing records publicly available from the Zhejiang securities regulator.
IPO plans emerge
The potential listing comes after China expanded the STAR Market’s so-called fifth listing standard in June to cover AI companies.
The rules do not require profitability, revenue or positive operating cash flow, making it the only A-share IPO channel that can accommodate companies with no revenue and continuing losses.
Shanghai’s stock exchange has said AI foundation-model companies must nevertheless have at least one product commercially launched and in scaled use, demonstrate clear technological advantages and have a concrete commercialization plan.
DeepSeek’s potential IPO follows a rapid push toward commercialization. The company completed its first external funding round in June, reportedly raising about 51 billion yuan ($7.6 billion) at a post-money valuation approaching 400 billion yuan.
A second round is now said to be underway at a pre-money valuation of about 500 billion yuan, with the two rounds together expected to raise more than 100 billion yuan.
Hiring spree
The company has also been hiring internationally, with about 150 openings recently posted, mainly for backend engineering and elastic computing roles supporting its AI services and agents.
DeepSeek generated about 475 million yuan in revenue in the first seven months of 2026, roughly 10 times its full-year 2025 revenue, while recording a net loss of about 715 million yuan, according to The Information.
The figures are not based on company financial statements and could change once audited figures are disclosed in an IPO prospectus.
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