Hong Kong bourse seeks to woo Southeast Asia, Middle East firms for second listings
HONG KONG: The Hong Kong stock exchange plans to attract listed companies in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, in particular, for second listings in the financial hub, its chief executive said, as the bourse looks to burnish its global credentials.
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEX) also sees a pickup in the number of companies listed in mainland China markets seeking a listing in the city to raise capital for their global expansions, Bonnie Chan said.
"We're now more focused on companies which are actually already listed on another market, but might have outgrown their domestic market," said Chan, a former capital markets lawyer, who took over as HKEX's first female CEO last year.
"I am now beginning to realize that our sweet spot may not be private companies."
As part of those efforts, the Hong Kong stock exchange will soon open a representative office in Riyadh, Chan said, which will allow "even closer connection" with the Saudi exchange, after recent product launches.
Three Singaporean firms listed in Hong Kong over the last 12 months, and a Thai company is expected to do the same soon, Chan said, adding HKEX's talks with potential issuers from outside the Greater China region has "gained quite a bit of momentum".
The Hong Kong exchange, which is the most preferred venue for Chinese companies looking to raise offshore capital, has been striving to attract IPO hopefuls from elsewhere as part of its ambition to become a global capital raising platform.
While that goal has met with limited success so far, Chan's efforts come against the backdrop of increased flows of capital into non-U.S. markets as U.S. President Donald Trump's policies cloud investors' appetite for dollar-denominated assets.
A surge in listings and follow-on share offerings by Chinese companies, such as electric vehicle battery giant CATL's raising of $5.3 billion last month, however, has boosted HKEX's outlook after it reported record high profit in the first quarter.
The Hong Kong exchange has emerged as the top destination globally for listings by volume, with a total of 31 companies raising $10 billion this year, according to LSEG data, with another $26 billion raised via follow-on share issuances.
INVESTOR INTEREST
The momentum is set to continue mainly due to a strong list of mainland Chinese firms tapping the Hong Kong market to raise capital for global expansion plans, as Beijing steps up efforts to bolster its private enterprises and revive its economy.
More than 20 mainland China-listed companies have applied to raise capital in Hong Kong by issuing shares, while another 20 have announced similar plans, Chan said, hoping to ride bullish investor sentiment.
The Hang Seng index is up nearly 19% so far this year. The number of companies in HKEX's IPO pipeline have doubled to more than 160 as of Friday from around 80 in end-December 2024, filing records show.
"Amidst all the development in the world, we are now seeing investors again turning their attention to this part of the world when they assess investment opportunities, fundraising venues," Chan said.
U.S. investors' demand for shares in recent Hong Kong listings has increased significantly, she said. "That's a good indication that the interest has returned from investors across different markets."
Reuters reported last month, citing sources, that online fast fashion retailer Shein was working towards a listing in Hong Kong after its proposed IPO in London failed to secure the green light from Chinese regulators.
Chan declined to comment on Shein's Hong Kong listing plans. - Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
No tensions with New Zealand, says Xi
High-table diplomacy: Luxon (second from right) meeting Xi (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. — AFP The leaders of China and New Zealand discussed the role of trade in boosting ties, while New Zealand also pressed its interests for peace and security in the Pacific, government statements showed. President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon met in the capital's Great Hall of the People yesterday as China's influence grows in the Pacific, challenging the traditionally stronger security foothold many Western nations have had there. On his first visit to China since taking office in November 2023, Luxon discussed the need for stability, less tension in the Indo-Pacific and New Zealand's 'enduring support for Pacific-led priorities', his government said in a statement. Luxon's meeting with the leader of New Zealand's biggest trade partner was 'constructive', he said in a post on X. 'We discussed the depth of the New Zealand-China relationship – from trade and people-to-people ties to our shared global responsibilities,' he said. 'In a complex world, open dialogue is more important than ever.' Luxon also backed up the role of the Pacific Islands Forum, an inter-government body seeking to foster cooperation among Oceanic countries and territories. Without making specific reference to any issue, Xi called for both countries to seek common ground and view differences 'accurately', state news agency Xinhua said. 'There are no historical grudges or conflicts of interest between China and New Zealand, so we should respect each other, seek common ground,' Xi told Luxon, it said, adding that both must precisely tackle disagreements. During his four-day visit to the commercial hub of Shanghai and the capital, Beijing, Luxon has championed an agenda of boosting business, travel and education for New Zealand. Xi also talked about deepening trade and investment ties, as well as scope to work on science and technology, climate change response and infrastructure along with education exchanges – echoing most of Luxon's goals. Luxon documented his meetings on Instagram, posting video messages to fellow citizens reinforcing his mission of getting 'money into your back pocket'. He clinched travel-related pacts and pushed New Zealand's tertiary education as well as its exports of meat, a key item of trade with China after dairy. Chinese tourists are New Zealand's third-largest group of international visitors, though official data show their numbers are still nearly a fifth lower than in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic. China Eastern Airlines will launch more flights with New Zealand from December, New Zealand said on Wednesday. Days before the visit, New Zealand unveiled a 12-month trial of visa waivers from November for Chinese passport holders arriving from Australia with valid visas from its neighbour. — Reuters
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Maybank extends first green loan to fuel Charoen Pokphand's RE expansion in Malaysia
(Seated) Goh Sin Tat, managing director of corporate banking at Maybank; and Borvorn Pienpongpanich, CFO of Altervim Company Limited; with (standing) Md Farid Kairi, deputy group CEO, global banking of Maybank; and Teerapong Rojthip, CFO of Charoen Pokphand Malaysia KUALA LUMPUR: Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) announced it is providing financing to the rooftop solar power regeneration business of Altervim, the renewable energy unit of Thai conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group. The banking group said it is providing Altervim its maiden green loan for the solar business, which is in line with the group's sustainability goals of driving energy transition across Asean. In the initial phase of its expansion in Malaysia, Altervim will deliver installed solar capacity of up to 20MW with Lotus's Malaysia's 28 branches. This is expected to generate 24.65 million kWh of clean energy per year and offset a total of 433,958 tonnes of CO2 emissions throughout the lifecycle of the projects. "We are proud to support Altervim's foray into Malaysia, while contributing to the government's energy transition agenda to increasing the renewable energy mix. "The financing facility to Altervim is structured according to Maybank's Sustainable Product Framework, and adds to the Bank's growing portfolio of sustainable finance," said Maybank global banking group CEO Datuk John Chong in a statement. From 2021 to 1Q25, Maybank as a group across the region mobilised RM125.46bil in sustainable finance, exceeding its RM80bil target by 2025. Altervim chief financial officer Borvorn Pienpongpanich said Malaysia is one of its key growth markets, with the facility enabling it to expand faster, deliver real carbon savings and help businesses reduce their energy costs with green energy.
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Energy stocks take centrestage as FBM KLCI bucks downward trend
KUALA LUMPUR: A surprise reversal in the performance of blue chips on Bursa Malaysia suggested foreign funds were seeking out local equities even as global markets were wracked by nerves over the US's entry into the Isreal-Iran conflict. While other regional equity benchmarks wallowed in the red, Malaysia's FBM KLCI made an unexpected bounce to erase a 14-point deficit and tack on a 6.61-point gain to 1,509.35. Nestle was seen leading the blue chips higher, surging RM3.18 to RM75.70. PETRONAS and energy-related stocks performed especially well following crude oil's weekend rally. MISC gained 13 sen to RM7.69, Tenaga Nasional rose 12 sen to RM14.34 and PETRONAS Chemicals climbed seven sen to RM3.11. The lower liners on the domestic market, however, remained subdued with the declining issues outweighing the advancers 4.17-to-1. Market volume remained on pace with that of previous days, with 2.04 billion share changed for RM960.69mil. Among the top performers, Petron Malaysia rose 13 sen to RM3.86, Hibiscus Peroleum jumped 13 sen to RM1.84 and Hengyuan Refining added nine sen to RM1.94. Regionally, stock markets were a sea of red, in line with US futures as the threat of growing warfare in the Middle East sapped investor appetite for equities. Japan's Nikkei dropped 0.2% to 38,331, South Korea's Kospi slid 0.51% to 3,006 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.13% to 23,498. On the Chinese mainland, the CSI300 fell 0.2% to 3,838, although the composite index showed some mild resilience, rising 0.15% to 3,365. With the exception of the Malaysian index, all other Asean markets were in negative territory. The Philippine and Indonesian markets led with 2.06% and 1.77% declines respectively.
