Tsinghua Unigroup

Last updated
Tsinghua Unigroup
FormerlyTsinghua University Sci-Tech General Company
Company type State-owned enterprise
Founded1988;36 years ago (1988)
Founder Tsinghua University
Headquarters
Beijing   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Area served
Computer science
Financial services
Real estate
Education
Parent Beijing Zhiguangxin Holding
Subsidiaries Guoxin Micro
Unicloud
UNISOC
Linxens
Unisplendour
Website www.unigroup.com.cn

Tsinghua Unigroup Co., Ltd. is a state-owned Chinese technology and semiconductor manufacturer that also supplies digital infrastructure and services to domestic and global markets. Based in Beijing, it is among the country's largest technology conglomerates; subsidiaries include UNISOC, China's largest mobile phone chip designer. [1] [2] Other core subsidies design and manufacture network equipment and server and storage products, and produce system integration, network security and software applications.

Contents

Overview

Tsinghua Unigroup has five main subsidiaries, New H3C Technologies, UNISOC Communications Co, Guoxin Micro, and UniCloud Technology Co. Other subsidiaries include Unisplendour. and France-based Linxens, a design and manufacturing company of micro-connectors for smart cards, RFID antennas and inlays. [3]

U.S. technology company Intel owns a 20 percent stake in Tsinghua Unigroup's UNISOC subsidiary—a consolidation of Tsinghua Unigroup acquisitions of Spreadtrum Communications, a fabless semiconductor company, and semiconductor components manufacturer RDA Microelectronics. [4] [5] [6] Tsinghua Unigroup operates a joint venture with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), as H3C Technologies Co, created after Tsinghua Unigroup purchased a 51 percent stake. [7] [8]

History

Tsinghua Unigroup was founded in 1988 by Tsinghua Holdings, a wholly-owned business unit of Tsinghua University, a major state research university in Beijing. The company was founded as Tsinghua University Sci-Tech General Company, [9] then renamed Tsinghua Unigroup in 1993. [10] Tsinghua Unigroup is a fabless semiconductor company that is 51 percent owned by Tsinghua Holdings and 49 percent owned by Beijing Jiankun Investment Group; the latter is led by Tsinghua Unigroup chairman and CEO Zhao Weiguo. [9] [11] Zhao, a graduate of Tsinghua University, was also appointed CEO of Tsinghua Unigroup in 2009, then made board chairman in 2013. [12] He chaired several of Tsinghua Unigroup's subsidiaries, including Unisplendour and Unigroup Guoxin Micro, until 2018. [13] Zhao remains CEO and chairman of Tsinghua Unigroup and Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC). [14]

In the years 2013 and 2014, Tsinghua Unigroup undertook acquisitions that included Spreadtrum Communications, now recognized as UNISOC. Spreadtrum is a fabless semiconductor enterprise known for its mobile chipset platform development. During the same period, Tsinghua Unigroup also acquired RDA Microelectronics, a manufacturer of semiconductor components. These acquisitions resulted in the amalgamation of Spreadtrum and RDA, forming the entity known as UniSpreadtrum RDA, subsequently renamed as UNISOC. A notable development was Intel Corp.'s investment of $1.5 billion for a 20 percent stake in this venture. [15] [16] [6]

In May 2015, Tsinghua Unigroup acquired a 51 percent stake in Hewlett-Packard's H3C Technologies, a China-based data-networking company, for approximately $2.3 billion. [7] [8] In September 2015, Western Digital announced that Unisplendour would make a US$3.775 billion equity investment to purchase its newly issued common stock, for about a 15 percent stake in the U.S. firm. Western Digital stated, in February 2016, that Unisplendour would not move forward with its offer following a decision by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to investigate the deal. [17] [18] In 2016, Tsinghua Unigroup partnered with Western Digital to establish a big data storage joint venture, Unis WDC Storage Co. in Nanjing [19]

In 2016, Tsinghua Unigroup founded Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC), its IDM memory subsidiary. In 2017, Tsinghua Unigroup announced plans to build two new memory-chip factories, in Nanjing and Chengdu. [20] Other investments include about a six percent stake in Portland, Oregon-based Lattice Semiconductor, acquired in 2017. [21]

In June 2018, Tsinghua Unigroup acquired French smart chip components maker Linxens for a reported $2.6 billion. [7] [22] A restructuring proposal that would have Guoxin Micro acquire Unic Linxens (formerly Unigroup Liansheng) was rejected by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) in June 2020. [23] In 2018, Tsinghua Unigroup also announced the construction of a $1.9 billion Linxens plant in the Tianjin Binhai Hi-Tech Industrial Development Area in Tianjin, China. [24] The company broke ground in September 2019, and construction of a main factory building was completed in July 2020. [25]

Default and reorganization

On November 16, 2020, Tsinghua Unigroup defaulted on $198M in bonds, resulting in a credit downgrading from AA to BBB and triggering cross-defaults. [11] [26] [27]

It emerged on July 11, 2021, that one of the creditors of Tsinghua Unigroup - Hong King-listed Huishang Bank - has requested that the company go into bankruptcy. Defaults at that time amounted to $3.6 billion for several onshore and offshore bonds. According to analysts, assets of barely $8 billion are surmounted by $30 billion in debt. [28] [29] [30]

News agencies reported in January 2022 that Tsinghua Unigroup had scrapped its intention to build two major fabs announced in 2017, citing serious financial issues. [31] The first was to be a DRAM plant in Chongqing, and the second was to be a $24 billion facility for 3D NAND flash memory in Chengdu. [32]

On July 11, 2022, Tsinghua UniGroup has completed the registration procedures and 100% of the equity interest of Tsinghua UniGroup has been registered under Zhiguangxin. [33]

In 2022, Beijing Zhiguangxin Holding took ownership of Tsinghua Unigroup. [34] Beijing Zhiguangxin Holding's largest shareholder is Anhui state-owned fund Wuhu Xinhou Yunzhi Equity Investment Partnership. [34]

Corruption investigation

In March 2023, Tsinghua Unigroup and its CEO has been accused of corruption by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The anti-fraud body accused Mr. Zhao of taking a state-owned company and using it to purchase goods and services run by his relatives and friends at prices significantly higher than the market price, leading to the company's financial issues. [35]

Subsidiaries

In the field of technology, Tsinghua Unigroup invests mainly in Integrated Circuit design and information and communication infrastructure. Tsinghua Unigroup is the controlling shareholder of dozens of technology enterprises such as Unis, UNISOC, Guoxin Micro, Linxens, etc.

Guoxin Micro

Unigroup Guoxin Microelectronics Co., Ltd. (002049.SZ) provides IC chips for various applications such as mobilephone SIM card, finance IC card and POS machine, automotive MCU and smart connectivity IC for industry and IoT applications. In 2021, Guoxin Micro's revenue was CN¥ 5.34 billion. [36]

Unicloud

Unicloud Technology Co., Ltd. is an industrial intelligent manufacturer that develops urban and industry cloud platforms for the construction and operation of smart cities in China. [37]

UNISOC

UNISOC is an IC design platform company. The company's products include mobilephone central processors, baseband chips, AI chips, low-power RF chips, and other IC chips for telecommunication, computing processor and controllers. Those products are used in consumer electronics and Internet of Things. In 2021, it gained an operating revenue of CN¥ 11.7 billion. [38]

Linxens

Linxens is a smart chips components maker specializing in security and identification, such as flexible connectors used in smart cards and RFID antennas and inlays. [39] In 2018, Tsinghua Unigroup, through its subsidiary Unigroup Liansheng, acquired Linxens for about US$2.6 billion. [7] [25] Founded in 1979, Linxens is headquartered in Levallois-Perret, France and, as of 2018, employs over 3,200 staff at nine production sites worldwide. It also has offices in China, Singapore and Thailand, and operates six R&D centers. [40] In June 2019, Guoxin Micro announced a plan to acquire Unigroup Liansheng, including its main asset, Linxens. [41] However, the deal was rejected by the Chinese securities regulator the following year. [42]

Unisplendour (UNIS)

Unisplendour Corporation Limited is a provider of full-stack ICT infrastructure. It provides services for digitization, networking, computing, cloud computing, and smart terminals. [43] Its subsidiary companies include H3C Technologies Co., Limited. [44] Unisplendour Digital (Suzhou) Group Co., Ltd. and Unicompute Technology Co., Ltd., etc. [45]

Yangtze Memory Technologies Co (YMTC)

YMTC is an IDM memory company that designs, produces, and sells 3D NAND flash memory. [46] The company is headquartered in Wuhan and has 6,000 employees. [47] Tsinghua Unigroup founded YMTC in July 2016, together with Hubei provincial government and the Chinese national "Big Fund" China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund with a total investment of $24 billion. [48]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TSMC</span> Taiwanese semiconductor foundry company

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited is a Taiwanese multinational semiconductor contract manufacturing and design company. It is the world's second-most valuable semiconductor company, the world's largest dedicated independent ("pure-play") semiconductor foundry, and its country's largest company, with headquarters and main operations located in the Hsinchu Science Park in Hsinchu, Taiwan. Although the central government of Taiwan is the largest individual shareholder, the majority of TSMC is owned by foreign investors. In 2023, the company was ranked 44th in the Forbes Global 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Micron Technology</span> American company producing semiconductor devices

Micron Technology, Inc. is an American producer of computer memory and computer data storage including dynamic random-access memory, flash memory, and solid-state drives (SSDs). It is headquartered in Boise, Idaho. Micron's consumer products, including the Ballistix line of memory modules, are marketed under the Crucial brand. Micron and Intel together created IM Flash Technologies, which produced NAND flash memory. It owned Lexar between 2006 and 2017. Micron is the only U.S.-based manufacturer of memory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cypress Semiconductor</span> Defunct American semiconductor company

Cypress Semiconductor Corporation was an American semiconductor design and manufacturing company. It offered NOR flash memories, F-RAM and SRAM Traveo microcontrollers, PSoCs, PMICs, capacitive touch-sensing controllers, Wireless BLE Bluetooth Low-Energy and USB connectivity solutions.

Lattice Semiconductor Corporation is an American semiconductor company specializing in the design and manufacturing of low power field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). Headquartered in the Silicon Forest area of Hillsboro, Oregon, the company also has operations in San Jose, Calif., Shanghai, Manila, Penang, and Singapore. Lattice Semiconductor has more than 1000 employees and an annual revenue of more than $660 million as of 2022. The company was founded in 1983 and went public in 1989. It is traded on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the symbol LSCC.

An integrated device manufacturer (IDM) is a semiconductor company which designs, manufactures, and sells integrated circuit (IC) products.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SK Hynix</span> South Korean memory semiconductor supplier

SK hynix Inc. is a South Korean supplier of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) chips and flash memory chips. SK Hynix is one of the world's largest semiconductor vendors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ASML Holding</span> Dutch manufacturer of semiconductor production equipment

ASML Holding N.V. is a Dutch multinational corporation founded in 1984. ASML specializes in the development and manufacturing of photolithography machines which are used to produce computer chips.

UNISOC, formerly Spreadtrum Communications, Inc., is a Chinese fabless semiconductor company headquartered in Shanghai which produces chipsets for mobile phones. UNISOC develops its business in two major fields - consumer electronics and industrial electronics. Consumer electronics includes smartphones, feature phones, smart audio systems, smart wearables and other related devices. Industrial electronics cover fields such as LAN IoT, WAN IoT and smart displays.

GlobalFoundries Inc. is a multinational semiconductor contract manufacturing and design company incorporated in the Cayman Islands and headquartered in Malta, New York. Created by the divestiture of the manufacturing arm of AMD, the company was privately owned by Mubadala Investment Company, a sovereign wealth fund of the United Arab Emirates, until an initial public offering (IPO) in October 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arm Holdings</span> British multinational semiconductor and software design company

Arm Holdings plc is a British semiconductor and software design company based in Cambridge, England, whose primary business is the design of central processing unit (CPU) cores that implement the ARM architecture family of instruction sets. It also designs other chips, provides software development tools under the DS-5, RealView and Keil brands, and provides systems and platforms, system-on-a-chip (SoC) infrastructure and software. As a "holding" company, it also holds shares of other companies. Since 2016, it has been majority owned by Japanese conglomerate SoftBank Group.

Tsinghua Holdings Corp., Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tsinghua University, itself a public university in China. The company was established as an in-house asset management company for Tsinghua's subsidiaries that were established in the 1990s by the technology transfer of research to business.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yangtze Memory Technologies</span> Chinese semiconductor company

Yangtze Memory Technologies Corp (YMTC) is a Chinese semiconductor integrated device manufacturer specializing in flash memory (NAND) chips. Founded in Wuhan, China, in 2016, with government investment and a goal of reducing the country's dependence on foreign chip manufacturers, the company was formerly a subsidiary of partially state-owned enterprise Tsinghua Unigroup.

The Chinese semiconductor industry, including integrated circuit design and manufacturing, forms a major part of mainland China's information technology industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund</span> Chinese National Fund

The China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund, also known as the National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund and the Big Fund, is a China Government Guidance Fund. The fund aims to help China reach its national goal of achieving self-sufficiency in the semiconductor industry by investing in domestic semiconductor companies. It has played a significant role with regards to the semiconductor industry in China by funding companies such as SMIC, Hua Hong Semiconductor, and YMTC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NAURA Technology Group</span> Chinese semiconductor equipment manufacturer

NAURA Technology Group is a partially state-owned publicly listed Chinese company that manufactures semiconductor chip production equipment. It is currently the largest semiconductor equipment manufacturer in China.

Montage Technology is a publicly listed Chinese semiconductor design company that manufactures integrated circuits for cloud computing and artificial intelligence.

Unigroup Guoxin Microelectronics is a partially state-owned publicly listed Chinese semiconductor company headquartered in Tangshan, Hebei. Its main businesses are in integrated circuit chip designs, intelligent security chips, and power semiconductor devices. It is estimated that in 2022, Guoxin Micro's estimated global share in SIM card chips tops 20%.

Unisplendour Corporation Limited is a partially state-owned publicly listed Chinese information technology company headquartered in Beijing.

References

  1. ↑ "China's Tsinghua Unigroup axes major memory chip projects". The Nikkei . January 26, 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-01-26. Retrieved 2022-09-10.
  2. ↑ "Why Goldman Is Siding With China on This Huawei Play". The Washington Post. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  3. ↑ "Unisplendour Tech shares soar on Tsinghua Unigroup's French deal". The Standard. 2020-07-25. Archived from the original on 2024-01-17. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  4. ↑ "4 Reasons for Intel's $1.5 Billion Bet in China". EE Times. 16 September 2014. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  5. ↑ "Intel to invest up to $1.5 billion in two Chinese mobile chipmake". Reuters. Archived from the original on 20 November 2020. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  6. 1 2 "Intel and Tsinghua Unigroup Collaborate to Accelerate Development and Adoption of Intel-based Mobile Devices". Archived from the original on 21 September 2020. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "HP sells $2.3 billion China unit stake to forge partnership with Tsinghua Unigroup". reuters.com. Reuters. 2020-05-21. Archived from the original on 2020-08-07. Retrieved 2020-11-21.
  8. 1 2 "Hewlett-Packard sells stake in Chinese unit for $2.3B". CNBC. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  9. 1 2 Wang, Yue (2015-07-29). "Meet Tsinghua's Zhao Weiguo, The Man Spearheading China's Chip Ambition". forbes.com. Archived from the original on 2024-04-25. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  10. ↑ "Unisplendour Corporation Limited". chinadaily.com.cn. 2011-12-30. Archived from the original on 2020-05-25. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  11. 1 2 Yu, Xie (2020-11-17). "Major Chinese Chip Company Defaults on Debt". The Wall Street Journal . ISSN   0099-9660. Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-18.
  12. ↑ "The Man Behind The Move On Micron: A Q&A With Tsinghua Unigroup's Zhao Weiguo". forbes.com. Archived from the original on 25 April 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  13. ↑ "Microchip Magnate Retires, Citing Heavy Workload". caixinglobal.com. Archived from the original on 2020-08-10. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  14. ↑ "Fourth Chinese DRAM Company Established by Tsinghua Unigroup". anandtech.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  15. ↑ Dou, Eva (2014-10-26). "Intel Invests $1.5 Billion for Stake in Chinese Chip Maker". wsj.com. The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 2024-01-18. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  16. ↑ "Intel to invest up to $1.5 billion in two Chinese mobile chipmakers". reuters.com. Reuters. 2020-09-25. Archived from the original on 2020-11-20. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  17. ↑ "UPDATE 3-Western Digital says China's Unisplendour drops investment plan". Reuters. Retrieved 2020-11-22.
  18. ↑ "WESTERN DIGITAL COMMITTED TO CREATING SIGNIFICANT VALUE THROUGH SANDISK ACQUISITION". sec.gov. Archived from the original on 2016-03-31. Retrieved 2020-11-22.
  19. ↑ "Tsinghua Unisplendour forms JV with Western Digital". China.org.cn. Archived from the original on 2016-09-10. Retrieved 2020-11-22.
  20. ↑ "China's Tsinghua Unigroup to build $30 billion Nanjing chip plant". reuters.com. Reuters. 2017-01-19. Retrieved 13 November 2020.[ dead link ]
  21. ↑ Eva Dou and Robert McMillan, The Wall Street Journal. "China’s Tsinghua Unigroup Buys Small Stake in U.S. Chip Maker Lattice". Archived 2023-11-12 at the Wayback Machine April 14, 2016. April 15, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Chip Giant Unigroup to Transfer Linxens to Listed Arm". caixinglobal.com. Caixing Gobal Limited. 2020-05-21. Archived from the original on 2022-12-25. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  23. ↑ Liao, Shumin (2020-06-08). "Unigroup Guoxin Stock Slumps as Regulator Pulls Plug on USD2.5 Billion Acquisition". yicaiglobal.com. Yicai Media Group. Archived from the original on 2020-11-16. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  24. ↑ Dou, Shicong (2018-05-14). "Tsinghua Unigroup Plans USD1.9 Billion Tianjin Base as It Looks to Extend Cloud Business". yicaiglobal.com. Yicai Media Group. Archived from the original on 2024-01-18. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  25. 1 2 "Tech company completes plant construction in China's Tianjin". xinhuanet.com. XinhuaNet. 2020-07-13. Archived from the original on 2024-01-18. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  26. ↑ Mitchell, Tom (2020-11-18). "Chinese tech group joins list of companies to default on bond issue". The Wall Street Journal. Eastern Edition. Financial Times. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2020-11-19.
  27. ↑ Yu, Xie (2020-12-10). "Chinese Chip Maker in Default on $2.5 Billion of Dollar Bonds". The Wall Street Journal . ISSN   0099-9660. Archived from the original on 2020-12-10. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  28. ↑ Mellor, Chris (2021-07-12). "China's Tsinghua Unigroup faces bankruptcy". Blocks and Files. Archived from the original on 2024-10-06. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
  29. ↑ "China chip giant Tsinghua Unigroup says creditor seeks bankruptcy". Nikkei Asia. Archived from the original on 2021-07-12. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
  30. ↑ "Chip maker Tsinghua Unigroup facing bankruptcy after creditor action". South China Morning Post. 2021-07-11. Archived from the original on 2021-07-11. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
  31. ↑ Shilov, Anton (26 January 2022). "Tsinghua Scraps 3D NAND and DRAM Fabs: May Affect Memory Prices". Tom's Hardware. Archived from the original on 7 August 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  32. ↑ "China's Tsinghua Unigroup axes major memory chip projects". Archived from the original on 2022-01-26. Retrieved 2022-03-29.
  33. ↑ "紫光股份（000938）公告正文 _ 数据中心 _ 东方财富网". data.eastmoney.com. Archived from the original on 2023-01-03. Retrieved 2023-01-04.
  34. 1 2 Pan, Che (12 July 2022). "China's Tsinghua Unigroup completes debt restructuring, ownership change to keep afloat its major semiconductor operations". South China Morning Post . Archived from the original on 12 September 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  35. ↑ "Zhao Weiguo: Chinese regulator accuses chip tycoon of corruption". bbc.com. 21 March 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2023-03-21.
  36. ↑ "Unigroup Guoxin Microelectronics Co Ltd". reuters.com. Reuters. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  37. ↑ "Tianjin's big data industry entered an accelerated period of development". tjbh.com. Binhai New Area. 2019-07-04. Archived from the original on 2020-11-28. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  38. ↑ "China's Tsinghua Unigroup axes major memory chip projects". Archived from the original on 2022-01-26. Retrieved 2022-03-29.
  39. ↑ "Tsinghua Unigroup in new push to raise its chip capacity". China Daily. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  40. ↑ "Chinese chipmaker Tsinghua Unigroup to buy France's Linxens for $2.6 billion: sources". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2020-11-30. Retrieved 2020-11-22.
  41. ↑ "Chinese Unigroup's Stocks Rally on USD2.6 Billion Plan to Buy French Linxens". Yicai Global. Archived from the original on 2020-11-17. Retrieved 2020-11-22.
  42. ↑ "Unigroup Guoxin Microelectronics's Asset Acquisition Rejected By Regulator, Share Trade To Resume On June 8". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2020-11-16. Retrieved 2020-11-22.
  43. ↑ "HP sells $2.3 billion China unit stake to forge partnership with Tsinghua Unigroup". Reuters . 22 May 2015. Archived from the original on 2020-08-07. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  44. ↑ "H-P to Sell 51 percent of Chinese Data-Networking Unit to Tsinghua Holdings". Wall Street Journal. 21 May 2015. Archived from the original on 2020-11-08. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  45. ↑ "China's Tsinghua to buy Western Digital stake in U.S. tech push". Reuters . 30 September 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-12-20. Retrieved 2015-09-30.
  46. ↑ Ma, Si (2020-09-04). "Tsinghua Unigroup sees breakthrough in flash memory output". China Daily. Archived from the original on 2020-11-14. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  47. ↑ "Company Profile". ymtc.com. YMTC. Archived from the original on 15 November 2020. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  48. ↑ "How China's chip industry defied the coronavirus lockdown". Nikkei Asia. Archived from the original on 21 November 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.