VCI Global Shares Soar After Securing $22 Million AI Contract
The deal for a sovereign AI platform, nearly matching the firm's market cap, sent shares up more than 25% on heavy trading volume.
Shares of VCI Global Limited (VCIG) surged over 25% after the company announced it had secured a landmark US$22 million contract to provide a sovereign AI infrastructure system. The deal, a significant development for a company with a market capitalization under $30 million, underscores the growing demand for secure, jurisdictionally-contained artificial intelligence solutions.
The contract was awarded to VCI Global's cybersecurity subsidiary, V Gallant Limited, by Codetext (BVI) Limited, a regional software developer focused on intelligence-driven national security. V Gallant will deliver a full-stack AI system featuring NVIDIA-powered compute systems and military-grade encryption at both the chip and storage levels. This design ensures that AI operations are independent of third-party cloud providers, a critical feature for data-sensitive sectors like government intelligence, fintech, and national digital infrastructure.
The global market for sovereign and localized AI infrastructure is expanding rapidly, driven by heightened cybersecurity risks and regulatory requirements for data privacy. According to industry forecasts cited in the announcement, the AI infrastructure market is projected to reach nearly $198 billion by 2030.
"The future of AI requires trust, and that starts with infrastructure," said Dato' Victor Hoo, Group Executive Chairman and CEO of VCI Global. "This contract proves our ability to deliver scalable, sovereign-grade systems that empower our clients to innovate without compromise." The market reacted strongly to the news, with trading volume swelling to 3.74 times its daily average, reflecting investor optimism about the contract's potential to reshape VCI Global's financial trajectory and establish it as a key player in the sovereign AI sector.