China has launched one of its largest market interventions in years, funneling $2 billion worth of yuan into equities and ETFs tracking semiconductor companies among other tech firms.

The move follows a steep correction in Chinese tech stocks, which came to a head on July 17.

Why China Intervened in Tech ETFs

The Asian country just saw record daily inflows of 13.8 billion yuan into the ChinaAMC STAR 50 ETF, which tracks the 50 largest companies on Shanghai’s STAR Market, with chipmakers heavily featured among its members.

At the time of the July 17 crash in Chinese tech stocks, the Shanghai Composite was down 9.1% on the month, with other indexes dumping by over 22%. Two state-backed investment firms, China Reform Holdings and China Chengtong Holdings, stated on Sunday they had invested around 60 billion yuan ($8.9 billion) into equities and ETFs, bringing the total sum from China’s government above $10 billion.

The July crash was largely attributed to overseas volatility and higher aversion to risks in the global markets.

Crypto’s AI Exposure Runs Through the Mining Sector

With pressure on crypto mining companies growing amid dwindling profits, some of the largest operators have pivoted towards AI rather than hashrate, tying their success to the same chip cycle that the Chinese government is now trying to straighten out.

Hut 8, a US-based Bitcoin mining company, just signed a 15-year, $9.8 billion lease, taking its contracted AI value to $26.6 billion. On the same day, IREN disclosed $2.8 billion in multi-year cloud contracts.

The same tech stock selloff that triggered intervention from Beijing saw the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fall 20% from its recent high, painting clear trouble for the overall sector.

Crypto traders are now carefully watching the ebbs and flows of chip manufacturer stocks. A June VanEck report indicates that Bitcoin miners need an additional $50 billion to cover development plans. If the report is accurate, miners are faced with a funding gap that could potentially trigger a selloff in BTC.

Source: CryptoPotato