How did this semiconductor stock deliver 78,000% returns with no revenue and 2 employees?

Synopsis: RRP Semiconductor’s extraordinary rise shows how easily markets can be swept up by hype. Rebranded to ride India’s semiconductor narrative, the stock surged despite weak operations, two employees, and erratic financials. The episode echoes the AI bubble, where stories and buzzwords often mattered more than real businesses.

How does a company with no real semiconductor business, just two employees, and unstable revenues turn into a billion-dollar stock market sensation? The stunning rise of RRP Semiconductor forces an uncomfortable question about today’s markets: are investors buying businesses, or just buying stories?

What Is RRP Semiconductor?

RRP Semiconductor is far from a sudden success story. Its roots trace back to 1980, when it was incorporated as G D Trading & Agencies Limited, a company that had quietly slipped into irrelevance over decades of inactivity. After years in obscurity, it re-emerged in 2023-24 with a carefully timed makeover, rebranding itself as a semiconductor company just as India’s chip manufacturing narrative gathered momentum. The name change aligned perfectly with policy buzz, even though there was little evidence of any meaningful semiconductor operations taking shape on the ground.

The more intriguing story, however, lies in its shareholding transformation. Through a preferential allotment, the original promoters saw their stake sharply diluted, leaving them with barely 1 percent ownership. Control effectively shifted to a new dominant shareholder who, curiously, chose not to be classified as a promoter. Instead, influence appeared to be exercised from behind the scenes, without formal accountability. During this period, the stock surged from Rs. 15 on April 2, 2024, to Rs. 11,784.40 by November 7, 2025, translating into an extraordinary gain of 78,462 percent.

Adding another layer of confusion, a separate company bearing the same name exists and is owned by the same non-promoter individual widely believed to be pulling the strings. This private entity applied for benefits under the government’s semiconductor PLI scheme but failed to secure approval. Despite this, the listed company continued to enjoy euphoric market sentiment, with investors seemingly overlooking the distinction between the two entities. The result was a blurred narrative, where branding and perception overwhelmed business fundamentals, allowing the stock to soar far beyond any defensible valuation. Meanwhile, the original promoter appeared content to remain in place, benefiting from the spectacle as the share price climbed, even as the underlying reality remained unchanged.

RRP’s Transformation 

RRP’s reinvention took shape in early 2024, when Chodankar, an entrepreneur previously associated with specialised offerings such as thermal imaging equipment and surveillance and weapons-mounted camera systems, entered into an arrangement to acquire control of G D Trading and Agencies Ltd. The takeover was executed by settling an outstanding loan of Rs. 80 million owed by the company to its original promoters, in exchange for equity ownership.

On April 23, the board cleared a preferential allotment that saw shares issued to Chodankar and a small group of investors at Rs. 12 apiece, a price roughly 40 percent below the prevailing market rate. This transaction handed Chodankar a commanding 74.5 percent stake, while reducing the founders’ holding to below 2 percent. As part of the restructuring, the company also approved a change in name to RRP Semiconductor.

As of September 2025, Chodankar holds 1,01,50,000 shares, representing a 73.96 percent stake. The value of these shares has seen an extraordinary rise, from Rs. 12.18 crore in 2024 to approximately Rs. 11,165 crore now, reflecting a growth of nearly 92,000 percent.

Notably, two months prior to this deal, Chodankar had set up a separate private entity, RRP Electronics Pvt. Ltd., with plans to establish an outsourced semiconductor assembly and testing facility in Maharashtra. The timing and naming of this venture likely reinforced market perceptions linking the listed company with the private semiconductor project, even though they were legally distinct.

At a public event in September 2024 marking the launch of RRP Electronics’ facility in Navi Mumbai, Chodankar struck an optimistic tone, declaring at a media interaction that India’s rise as a global technology powerhouse was “beyond doubt.” The event drew high-profile attention, with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and former Indian cricket captain Sachin Tendulkar in attendance, as seen in videos later shared by the company online.

This narrative played into the broader backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s semiconductor initiative announced in 2021, a Rs. 760 billion incentive programme that has attracted around USD 18 billion in announced commitments from global and domestic players such as Micron Technology, Tata Group, Foxconn and HCL Technologies.

According to regulatory disclosures, RRP Semiconductor has classified RRP Electronics as a related party due to common ownership by Chodankar. However, the listed entity does not hold any direct equity stake in the private company.

78,000 Percent: What Drove The Rally?

As enthusiasm around the global semiconductor boom gathered pace, a section of investors began treating RRP Semiconductor as a proxy bet on India’s chip ambitions. That optimism largely overlooked a crucial detail: the stock’s free float is minuscule. Nearly 98 percent of the company’s shares are controlled by Chodankar and a close-knit group of associates, many of whom surface across other entities linked to the RRP ecosystem, including RRP Defense, Indian Link Chain Manufacturers, RRP Electronics and RRP S4E Innovation, as per disclosures filed with the BSE and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

Until recently, RRP Semiconductor was barely known even within Indian market circles. That changed rapidly as the stock became a social media phenomenon, delivering gains of over 55,000 percent in just 20 months up to December 17, making it the best-performing stock globally among companies with a market capitalization exceeding USD 1 billion. The meteoric rise came despite stark fundamentals: the company reported negative revenue in its latest financials, disclosed only two full-time employees in its most recent annual report, and retained only a loose association with the semiconductor theme after pivoting away from its earlier real estate activities in early 2024.

A potent mix of online speculation, an extremely limited tradable share base and India’s expanding pool of retail investors led to 149 consecutive upper-circuit sessions. This unfolded even as both the company and stock exchange officials issued repeated cautions to investors. More recently, cracks have begun to appear. The Securities and Exchange Board of India has started scrutinising the stock’s extraordinary rise for possible irregularities, according to sources familiar with the matter. The company, now valued at around USD 1.7 billion is restricted by the exchange to once-a-week trading, has already declined about 6 percent from its peak on November 7.

For many market watchers, the episode highlights the increasingly extreme nature of rallies in select pockets of the Indian equity market. With no major listed semiconductor manufacturers in India, retail investors appear eager to latch on to any perceived exposure to the global chip boom. At the same time, the case underscores the growing challenge regulators face in balancing investor protection against speculative excess. In a regulatory filing dated November 3, the company clarified that it has not commenced any semiconductor manufacturing, has not applied for benefits under any government incentive schemes, and denied having any association with celebrities.

The Numbers That Don’t Add Up

A closer look at RRP Semiconductor’s financials raises more questions than answers. Over the past two years, the company has reported positive revenue in just five of the last nine quarters, underscoring the inconsistency in its operating performance. Profitability has been equally erratic. Revenue rose sharply from Rs. 0.38 crore in March 2024 to Rs. 14.82 crore by December 2024, only to fall back to around Rs. 6 crore in March 2025. More recently, the company slipped back into the red, reporting negative revenue of Rs. 6.82 crore in Q2FY26.

Earnings trends mirror this volatility. The company has posted profits in only four of the nine quarters during this period. Net profit increased from Rs. 0.08 crore in March 2024 to Rs. 6.56 crore in December 2024, before swinging to a loss of Rs. 7.15 crore in the latest reported quarter. Such sharp reversals make it difficult to identify any stable or sustainable business trajectory.

The negative revenue stems from a reversal of sales previously recognised in the three months ended December 2024, linked to a Rs. 4.4 billion order secured in November from Telecrown Infratech Pvt. Ltd. The contract was subsequently cancelled due to what the company described as “contractual disagreements,” as disclosed in an exchange filing. As part of this reversal, the company also clawed back Rs. 80 million of revenue in the March quarter. Taken together, these adjustments further complicate the financial picture, especially when viewed alongside the fact that the company employs just two full-time staff and continues to deliver stock returns that bear little resemblance to its underlying operating reality.

Conclusion 

What happened with RRP Semiconductor feels uncomfortably similar to what the world has seen during the AI boom. Across markets, companies slapped an “AI” tag onto their names and watched valuations explode, even when real products, customers, or revenues were missing. RRP followed the same playbook. The semiconductor label, combined with India’s big technology push, was enough to spark imagination. Investors seemed to fill in the blanks themselves, assuming future factories, government incentives, and explosive growth that never actually showed up.

Disclaimer

The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on tradebrains.in are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Investing in equities poses a risk of financial losses. Investors must therefore exercise due caution while investing or trading in stocks. Trade Brains Technologies Private Limited or the author are not liable for any losses caused as a result of the decision based on this article. Please consult your investment advisor before investing.

The post How did this semiconductor stock deliver 78,000% returns with no revenue and 2 employees? appeared first on Trade Brains.