CoStone Capital Research
Investment Thesis
CoStone Capital (基石资本, Shenzhen) is one of China's earliest private equity and venture firms, founded in 2001 by seven investment bankers led by chairman Zhang Wei. Its stated mission is to be the organizer of the equity-investment industry chain. Since 2016 it has concentrated on three areas: hard tech (technology where China trails the United States), emerging industries, and life sciences and healthcare. Chairman Zhang Wei's 2026 New Year message frames the thesis as investing in "the hunger and anxiety of each era": where a large technology gap with the US creates strategic urgency, valuations and returns jump once a breakthrough lands. The firm publishes 22 "military rules" for investing, including concentrated investing with focused service, margin of safety over return, and a preference for companies that can list independently on China's A-share market.
Stage Focus
The firm covers the full company life cycle: angel, venture capital, growth PE, buyout and PIPE, plus public-equity and international funds. Its flagship PE main funds (seven so far) write large, concentrated checks. Early on it averaged only 5 to 6 deals a year at roughly RMB 100M each. It also runs angel funds, including the Shenzhen Angel Mother Fund sub-funds since 2018 and new Dongguan and Wuhu angel funds.
Check Size
Historically about RMB 100M per project, with 70% of early deals above RMB 50M. Single checks have reached RMB 1.2B (Changxin Technology, 2021, as lead of the round). Smaller angel and venture checks exist through its angel funds, but no published range is given.
Lead Tendency
Frequently leads or co-leads and takes board seats (for example lead of Changxin Technology's second round, joint lead of Blue Arrow Aerospace C+). It also does control-type deals (Hairun/Huitian New Materials, Shannon Xinchuang, Gaochuang Motion Control).
Recent Activity
- Cumulative AUM above RMB 90B (about US$12.5B); 439 projects invested through 2025-12-31, 150 effective exits, 79 independent IPOs.
- Portfolio listings: Insta360 (Arashi Vision) STAR Market IPO June 2025; MiniMax Hong Kong IPO January 2026; Changxin Technology (CXMT) passed IPO review May 2026; Blue Arrow Aerospace STAR IPO application accepted December 2025.
- January 2026: named among the first intended sub-fund managers of China's national venture capital guidance fund.
- December 2025: completed acquisition of Gaochuang motion control.
Portfolio Highlights
Per Xincaifu (via Sina, April 2026), 57 listed companies in AI, semiconductors, smart vehicles and robotics, commercial space, and life sciences, with about RMB 2.1T combined market value. Highlights: SenseTime, CloudWalk, 4Paradigm, MiniMax, Biren, Moore Threads, OmniVision (Hua Chuang), Changxin Technology, YMTC, Insta360, Mindray, MGI Tech, Sunward Intelligent Equipment, Blue Arrow Aerospace, Agibot, Shannon Xinchuang.
Team
- Zhang Wei, Chairman and founding partner
- Lin Ling, Vice Chairman and partner
- Wang Qiwen, managing partner
- Chen Yanli, managing partner
- Xu Wei, president
- Yang Shengjun, partner (technology investing lead)
- Pu Binyan, managing director
Decision Process
Partnership culture with an investment committee; founding partners have stayed together for 20+ years. Partners sit on portfolio boards and lead industry-chain "point-line-plane" investing: back the chain leader first, then expand upstream and downstream.
Founder Preferences
Entrepreneurs with entrepreneurial spirit and world-class or platform-level technology, often scientist-founders (professors at HKUST, CUHK, MIT, SUSTech). The firm avoids trend-chasing and companies that cross into unrelated fields.
Geographic Focus
China first. Headquartered in Shenzhen with offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Hefei, Nanjing, Changsha, Wuhan, Hong Kong and Silicon Valley. LPs are mostly Chinese state capital and local-government funds. The firm has an international (Global Impact) fund but the portfolio is overwhelmingly China.
Portfolio Page Note
The official portfolio page (stonevc.com/InvestmentCase) is a wall of 191 logo images with filename captions ("test.png") that name no company. Only three companies were legible from captions (Huazhong CNC, Mimeng Media, Mook Books). The remaining names come from the firm's own news pages and the April 2026 Xincaifu feature, not from the logo wall.