(Yicai) Sept. 22 -- Shares in Great Microwave Technology plunged by the exchange-imposed limit today after the Chinese radio frequency chip developer said that its chairman and actual controller has been taken into custody by the authorities.

Great Microwave's share price [SHA:688270] tumbled 12.5 percent to finish at CNY60.77 (USD8.50). Earlier in the day it sank 20 percent to CNY55.60. However, despite today’s decline, the stock price has still gained 74 percent in value so far this year thanks to the company’s strong performance.

Yu Faxin has been detained by the Supervisory Committee of Huangshi in central Hubei province and is not able to perform his duties at the company at the moment, the Hangzhou-based firm said yesterday, without offering an explanation.

This matter will not affect the company’s normal operations and there has been no change in the firm’s controlling rights, Great Microwave said. During Yu’s absence, Director and General Manager Zhang Bing will assume the chairman’s responsibilities.

50-year-old Yu holds a PhD in communication and information systems from the Harbin Institute of Technology and he has been a professor at Zhejiang University’s School of Aeronautics and Astronautics since 2006.

He founded Great Microwave, which specializes in the development and manufacturing of RF chips for wireless communication terminals, in 2015 and took the company public on Shanghai’s Star Market in 2022. The firm's products are widely applied in the Internet of Things and satellite communications.

Great Microwave logged rapid growth in the first six months with net profit surging 11-fold year-on-year to CNY62.3 million (USD8.8 million), and revenue soaring 74 percent to CNY205 million (USD28.81 million), according to its latest financial report.

Great Microwave attributed the growth to recovering downstream demand, particularly from emerging strategic industries such as commercial aerospace, the low-altitude economy and deep-sea exploration, it said.

As of June 30, Yu owned about 26 percent of Great Microwave, making him the largest shareholder. Last year, his pre-tax salary amounted to CNY961,000 (USD135,000).

Editor: Kim Taylor