Recently, the domestic semiconductor equipment industry has made two moves almost simultaneously.
Piotech plans to acquire a controlling stake and related assets of PVD equipment manufacturer SJI Semiconductor for CNY 2.5 billion; almost simultaneously, Naura Technology announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary intends to acquire 100% equity of hybrid bonding equipment manufacturer Nuohe Jianwei for CNY 405 million in cash. Looking back further, Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment acquired a 64.69% stake in CMP equipment manufacturer Hangzhou Zhonggui for CNY 1.576 billion, and the transfer of ownership was completed in early June.
The three transactions total approximately CNY 4.48 billion, targeting three core front-end and back-end process routes: thin film deposition, advanced packaging bonding, and chemical mechanical polishing.
Notably, the targets of these three transactions are not the traditional strengths of their respective acquirers.
Piotech started with PECVD and ALD thin film deposition equipment, and PVD has long been the missing piece in its product matrix; Naura Technology excels in front-end equipment such as etching, thin film, and furnace tube equipment, and previously only indirectly positioned itself in hybrid bonding equipment through industrial investment funds; the core business of Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment is etching equipment, while CMP falls under the category of wet processes.
Viewed together, the three M&A cases point to the same action: leading equipment manufacturers are using capital to piece together single-category advantages into a full-category platform.
01. Piotech Acquires SJI Semiconductor for CNY 2.5 Billion
First, let us look at the largest transaction by amount, Piotech's acquisition.
According to the board resolution announcement disclosed on the evening of October 15, Piotech plans to issue shares and pay cash to 34 counterparties including Wang Shikuan, Xia Xiaojun, and Wuxi Xinju, to purchase 82.97% of the shares of SJI Semiconductor, 100% equity of Shanghai Tainawei, and 100% equity of Wuxi Kuanxing, with the target assets valued at a total of CNY 2.5 billion. Of this, the cash consideration is approximately CNY 672 million, and the share consideration is approximately CNY 1.828 billion. Upon completion of the transaction, Piotech will directly and indirectly hold 100% of the shares of SJI Semiconductor.
The announcement disclosed that SJI Semiconductor was established in June 2021, with Wang Shikuan as the legal representative. Its main business is the R&D, production, and sales of semiconductor thin film deposition and etching equipment. Its core products cover three directions: PVD, dry etching, and CVD. Downstream customers are distributed in fields such as power devices, MEMS, advanced packaging, and compound semiconductors.
According to information on the official website of the Wuxi High-tech Zone Management Committee, the thin film and etching equipment R&D and production base project of SJI Semiconductor was signed and landed in Wuxi High-tech Zone in August this year.
02. Naura Technology Acquires Nuohe Jianwei for CNY 405 Million
The transaction structure for Naura Technology is simpler. According to the related-party transaction announcement released by the company on October 16, its wholly-owned subsidiary, Beijing Naura Technology Microelectronic Equipment Co., Ltd., signed an equity transfer agreement with Beijing Integrated Circuit Equipment Industry Investment and M&A Phase II Fund (Limited Partnership) on October 15, acquiring 100% equity of Nuohe Jianwei for CNY 404.5607 million in cash.
Nuohe Jianwei was established in April 2025. After its establishment, it acquired physical assets, intangible assets, business operations, and R&D teams related to hybrid bonding equipment through asset acquisitions. Its main business is the R&D, production, sales, and services of hybrid bonding equipment.
The announcement disclosed that its factory-shipped equipment has achieved nanometer-level precision alignment, its products have secured repeat orders, and it is currently conducting validations and negotiating intended orders with multiple leading customers.
The announcement shows that hybrid bonding equipment is key equipment supporting the core processes of advanced packaging, enabling solder-free direct bonding between dies in 3D integration scenarios such as SoC, HBM, and Chiplet. In addition, the announcement also disclosed that the operating profit and net profit of Nuohe Jianwei for fiscal year 2025 and the first half of 2026 are both negative, as it is still in the R&D investment and customer validation stage.
03. Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Acquires Hangzhou Zhonggui for CNY 1.576 Billion
The earliest in time is Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment's acquisition of Hangzhou Zhonggui. According to the plan previously disclosed by Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment, it intends to purchase a 64.69% equity stake in Hangzhou Zhonggui by issuing shares and paying cash. The appraisal report shows that the appraised value of 100% equity of Hangzhou Zhonggui is CNY 2.5014 billion, with an appreciation rate of 232.28%, corresponding to a transaction price of CNY 1.5760491 billion for the 64.69% equity stake.
Since its establishment, Hangzhou Zhonggui has mainly engaged in the R&D, production, and sales of chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) equipment, providing customers with 200mm and 300mm full-line CMP equipment solutions. It is one of the few domestic manufacturers that have mastered the core technology of 12-inch high-end CMP equipment and achieved mass production.
This transaction also has an institutional label: it is the first case on the SSE STAR Market to apply the simplified review procedure for M&A and restructuring. It was approved by the SSE on April 28, received the registration approval from the CSRC on May 12, and the transfer of the target assets was completed in early June. Upon completion of the transaction, Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment's product matrix covers the four major front-end core processes: etching, thin film deposition, metrology and inspection, and wet processes.
04. Conclusion
Looking at the three M&A cases of leading enterprises, the M&A logic in the domestic semiconductor equipment industry is showing several observable commonalities.
First, the selection of targets focuses on the blank links in the acquirers' existing product matrices: Piotech PVD, Naura Technology supplements hybrid bonding, and Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment supplements CMP. All three transactions point to the product line expansion of "platform-type equipment companies" rather than crossing over into unfamiliar tracks.
Second, the transaction methods match the maturity of the targets: SJI Semiconductor and Hangzhou Zhonggui have both achieved mass production, corresponding to the larger transactions where Piotech and Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment adopt the method of issuing shares and paying cash; Nuohe Jianwei was only established in 2025 and is not yet profitable, so Naura Technology chose to acquire it for CNY 405 million in cash, resulting in a lighter transaction amount and risk exposure.
As of now, the two transactions involving Piotech and Naura Technology are still in the early stages of disclosure and require procedures such as shareholder meetings and regulatory reviews; whether the continuous losses of Nuohe Jianwei can converge with the increase in orders also awaits verification in subsequent financial reports.