Unitree Technology hasn't even officially rang the bell for listing, but off-exchange "dark market trading" has already become hot in advance.

Currently, many intermediaries are privately acquiring this new stock through various channels, with highly varied pricing: some even quoted as high as 520 yuan per share, while others quoted 410 yuan per share, far above the issue price of 150.8 yuan per share. Faced with such tempting premiums, many successful investors actively searched online for buyers, hoping to secure their money early.

It is worth noting that this kind of "gray market trading" was previously common among new stocks on the Beijing Stock Exchange, but it has recently been spreading to star stocks on the STAR Market. Before Changxin Technology went public, a similar situation occurred, with intermediaries buying back shares at a high price of 36 yuan per share (with an issue price of only 8.66 yuan per share).

|Beware of default traps behind "grey market trading."

This kind of "dark market trading" is essentially a private transaction between strangers. It seems like a sure win, but in reality, it carries many hidden risks.

The specific operation is as follows: the intermediary and the lottery winner agree on a purchase price in advance (for example, 520 yuan per share). On the day the new shares are officially listed, the winners must fully follow the intermediary's instructions and sell the shares at the specified price. If the actual selling price after listing exceeds 520 yuan, any excess profit goes entirely to the intermediary; However, if the actual selling price is below 520 yuan, the loss is borne by the intermediary themselves.

In practice, to control risk, the intermediary pays in two ways: if the winner is willing to provide full proof such as ID card, stock trading account, and screenshots of the lottery, the intermediary will transfer the full payment in advance. After the listing and trading are completed, the winner returns the excess money to the agent at the actual selling price.

If the winner is unwilling to hand over their account or other sensitive information, the intermediary will choose "installment payment": after seeing the winning screenshot, they pay 50% upfront, and pay the remaining 50% after the listing settlement is completed.

Intermediaries usually strictly require winners to "fully cooperate" with the order on listing day; otherwise, any losses incurred will be borne by the winner. However, this transaction model left the two parties unfamiliar with each other, lacking a foundation of trust and no legitimate third-party guarantee platform involved. In similar past transactions, there have been multiple instances of breaches by intermediaries or winners, making it difficult to protect investors' rights.

| The main arena for grey market trading is the Beijing Stock Exchange, where the gameplay is even more complex

Although star stocks on the STAR Market have also started to experience gray market trading, this is still a very rare phenomenon. The real arena for grey market trading is actually the Beijing Stock Exchange, and its "gameplay" is much more complex.

In recent days, intermediaries have also been actively acquiring new stocks from the Beijing Stock Exchange, such as Xinsheng Technology and Huada Haitian. For Xinsheng Technology, the intermediary's operations are similar to Unitree Technology's, both acquiring at agreed prices after winning the lottery.

But for BGI Haitian, the agency started acquiring before winning the lottery, which is a unique phenomenon of the Beijing Stock Exchange and closely related to its IPO mechanism. Currently, the Beijing Stock Exchange operates a "cash subscription" mechanism, which allocates new shares based on the size of the subscription funds. As long as your capital is large enough (for example, 15 million yuan), you can almost always win the lottery.

Based on this "capital competition" rule, intermediaries estimate in advance how much capital is needed for a single lot of new stocks and then directly provide a bundled quote. This gave rise to the Beijing Stock Exchange's unique "buyout before winning the lottery" approach.

Kingtech's Perspective | Off-exchange gray markets are "sentiment premiums," definitely not true valuation anchors

Unitree Technology's off-market gray market quote of 520 yuan per share is not a rational valuation formed by institutions based on company fundamentals, but rather an "emotional price" estimated by scalpers based on the sector's heat, the scarcity of winning lots, and the lack of price fluctuations on the first day of listing.

Such quotations contain extremely high optimistic expectations, even overdrawing the company's medium- to long-term growth potential, lacking fundamental support. Investors must clearly realize that off-exchange gray markets are merely a gray area of capital competition and must never be used as a valuation anchor for secondary market investments.

Be wary of the dual risks of legal and financial issues in "account lending."

For ordinary investors who win the lottery, the primary principle when facing the lure of high prices off-exchange is "compliance first." Participating in grey market trading not only violates the real-name registration system for securities accounts but also faces significant fund security risks. Due to the lack of third-party guarantees, if an intermediary abstracts with funds or makes operational errors, investors will face nowhere to defend their rights.

Investors are advised to abandon the mentality of "locking in returns early" and avoid engaging in illegal activities such as account lending or private transfer of lottery qualification.

Take a rational view of the hype surrounding new stocks

When market sentiment is in a feverish phase, it is often a time when risks accumulate. For popular tech stocks like Unitree Technology, investors should shift their focus from "IPO arbitrage" to "long-term value."

After the official listing, the focus should be on evaluating the company's core businesses (such as the commercialization of humanoid robots and the progress of self-development of core components) and whether the performance growth rate matches its high valuation. In the process of returning to rational valuations, finding buying opportunities with truly core competitiveness and reasonable valuations is the optimal solution for mature investors to profit steadily in the capital market.