The Battle for "First Commercial Space Stock" Begins: CAS Space Rushes for STAR Market IPO

The battle for the first commercial space stock has officially begun. On March 31, the application of CAS Space Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "CAS Space") for an IPO on the STAR Market was accepted. This is another commercial space company, following LandSpace, to charge toward the STAR Market. However, the two have chosen different listing standards. LandSpace opted for the fifth listing standard for the STAR Market, which is "expected market capitalization not less than RMB 4 billion, with main business or products approved by relevant national departments and large market space." In contrast, CAS Space chose the second listing standard: "expected market capitalization not less than RMB 1.5 billion, operating revenue for the most recent fiscal year not less than RMB 200 million, and cumulative R&D investment over the last three fiscal years accounting for no less than 15% of the cumulative operating revenue over the same period." This choice is related to CAS Space having taken the lead in achieving scaled revenue. In fact, LandSpace's business scale remains relatively limited, with revenue of only RMB 4 million in 2024. By comparison, CAS Space's revenue reached RMB 244 million in 2024 and RMB 84 million in the first three quarters of 2025, while its net losses during the same periods were RMB 861 million and RMB 750 million, respectively. The scaled revenue achieved by CAS Space is primarily linked to the increase in launch frequency. In 2024, it successfully conducted three carrier rocket launches, directly driving growth in launch service revenue, its core business. Currently, CAS Space has successfully achieved mass production and launch of the Lijian-1 carrier rocket. On March 30, its Lijian-2 Y1 carrier rocket · International Textile City was also successfully launched, precisely placing the Light Boat prototype test spacecraft (New Journey 02 satellite), the New Journey 01 satellite, and the Tianshi-01 satellite into their predetermined orbits. According to information obtained by Xinfeng from CAS Space, the maiden flight mission of the Lijian-2 Y1 carrier rocket · International Textile City mainly verified three key technologies: the application of the CBC configuration, the design and manufacturing process of large-diameter smooth-walled cylindrical tanks, and the horizontal jettisoning/separation of large fairings. As of the end of 2025, CAS Space had cumulatively launched a payload weight of over 11 tons, ranking first among Chinese private commercial carrier rocket enterprises. Its main order types cover commercial sectors, research institutions, and national missions. Currently, CAS Space is advancing the research and development of reusable carrier rockets and plans to conduct the maiden flight of the "Lijian-2 Heavy (PR-2H)," a two-stage large-scale reusable liquid carrier rocket, in 2028. For this IPO, CAS Space plans to raise RMB 4.18 billion to be used for the construction of projects including reusable large-scale carrier rockets, launch vehicles and spacecraft, and engines. With LandSpace and CAS Space successively charging toward the STAR Market, the industry is closely watching whether more commercial space players will have their IPO applications accepted in the future.