Shanghai Belling sees rapid growth as research investments pay dividends

During the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, integrated circuit company Shanghai Belling Corp Ltd became the world's largest provider for electric energy metering chips in comprehensive gauges. The company now accounts for 70 percent of the production of single-phase metering chips, while its global market share for three-phase metering chips rose from 10 to 30 percent.

Shanghai Belling has enjoyed many milestones over the last five years. From gaining the largest market share in China regarding high precision analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), to being one of the first companies to realize domestic substitution in terms of the reliable application of high-speed ADCs.

Its annual sales of power management chips has exceeded 5 billion units, ranking among the top three regarding domestic shipments, and their new power devices, such as IGBT and MOSFET products, have seen their sales spike by 400 percent from 2021 to 2025.

All these achievements can be largely attributed to the company's increased efforts in technology innovation.

In 2024, Shanghai Belling's research investment surged 20 percent year-on-year to 430 million yuan ($60.4 million). The company has devoted over 1.7 billion yuan of research investment during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, with the compound average growth rate coming in at 34 percent.

Shanghai Belling's dedication to research has yielded positive results. In the last five years, the company has managed to build a comprehensive product layout for power and analog ICs. By mid-2025, the number of products the company offers had reached 4,559.

Shanghai Belling has also consolidated its leading position in industries where it has more of a competitive edge. For example, its market share in the power industry has risen from 20 to over 30 percent.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, Shanghai Belling has also accelerated upgrades for product application the automotive electronics, high-end industrial control, and new energy industries, developing a high-performance, highly reliable power chain and signal chain IC products.

Breakthroughs have also been made in strategic emerging industries like automotive electronics. Over 80 of Shanghai Belling's products have been installed in various vehicle models so far.

The company's strong fiscal results show that the efforts have paid off.

Despite the headwinds and uncertainties in the global IC market, Shanghai Belling's consolidated revenue is expected to exceed 3 billion yuan by the end of 2025, with consolidated revenue from IC sector estimated at about 2.2 billion yuan. By the end of 2020, the company saw its consolidated revenue coming in at 1.332 billion yuan, while its IC design generated about 971 million yuan. The compound annual growth rate of consolidated revenue is expected to grow over 18 percent in the next five years.

The company's market cap has also jumped from less than 10 billion yuan to a peak of over 37 billion yuan.

Shanghai Belling not only focuses on its own business growth, but is also devoted to facilitating the development of the whole ecosystem. In the last five years, it has nurtured a number of technologically advanced small and medium-sized enterprises, including Shenzhen Renergy Technology Co Ltd, Nanjing Micro One Electronics Inc, and Shenzhen-based Sytatek.

Experts work at the research and development center of Shanghai Belling Corp Ltd on Sept 15.

shijing@chinadaily.com.cn