(Yicai Global)  March 28 -- A pioneering Chinese firm in the field of commercialized  quantum information technology will list on the upcoming science and  technology innovation board in Shanghai.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange named Hefei-based QuantumCTek in the second batch of companies approved for listing in a statement.

"QuantumCTek's  successful listing on the sci-tech board will mean that the  industrialization of quantum technology has been recognized by the  capital market," a senior executive of a well-known Chinese QIT company  told Yicai Global. "What matters is the financing."

The firm, based at the University of Science and Technology of China, aims  to raise CNY300 million (USD44.6 million) through the offering, SSE  data shows. Its valuation is about CNY10 billion (USD1.5 billion) based  on its last round of financing.

Total fundraising  among the eight firms included in the second batch is expected to be  around CNY6 billion. The medical sector dominated the list with three  entrants, namely, Amoytop Biotech, Chipscreen Biosciences and Basda  Medical Apparatus. Other companies include satellite operator  Twenty-First Century Aerospace Technology, fiber optic solutions  provider HYC Technology and lighting firm Appotronics. 

Imaging software  developer ArcSoft, a supplier to Samsung and Huawei, aims to raise the  most with a CNY1.1 billion (USD160 million) target.

Commercial QIT

For QuantumCTek,  the commercial demand for QIT is mainly concentrated in national  strategic areas like security, energy and electricity, the firm's  President Zhao Yong told Yicai Global at the International Conference on  Quantum Cryptography held in the second half of last year. "Wider use  will cut the cost of QIT applications, and cooperation with companies in  the industry chain will develop more usage scenarios." 

China has started  developing systematic performance evaluation standards to promote the  standardization of QIT, for which QuantumCTek is an important driving  force, Zhao added.

Set up in 2009,  QuantumCTek works on information systems, QIT, quantum computing and the  development of general quantum technology. USTC holds an 18 percent  stake through its asset management unit. Famed physicist Pan Jian-Wei,  known as China's 'father of quantum' leads QuantumCTek's team.

QIT is an emerging  application technology based on the basic principles of quantum  mechanics. Its security and efficiency for transmission are unmatched by  traditional communication networks. China leads the world in QIT  development and application, it has built over 2,000 kilometers of  quantum security communications line, known as the Beijing-Shanghai  Trunk Line. 

The country will launch multiple related communication satellites to facilitate transmission across large areas.

Editor: William Clegg