Analysis | HKEX readies ‘game-changer’ IPO rules that promise to open funding taps for Hong Kong technology start-ups
- The exchange is slashing valuation prerequisites and will consider IPOs by five types of Big Tech firms, including pre-revenue companies
- UBS and Haitong International both report strong issuer interest as HKEX strives to put Hong Kong back on top among global IPO venues
This is part one of a two-part series looking at upcoming changes at Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX), which operates the Hong Kong bourse and owns the London Metal Exchange (LME). Part one looks at the impact of upcoming listing reforms. Part two next week delves into a restructuring of the London Metal Exchange a year after an outage in nickel trading that spawned lawsuits against HKEX.
One October afternoon, Arthur Chan Chi-chuen received news that would change his seven-year-old start-up forever.
Sitting in his office at the Hong Kong Science and Technology Park, Chan’s domain expert from the science park accelerator team said Hong Kong’s stock exchange was seeking public feedback on a plan to enable promising start-ups – even those that have not earned a single cent in revenue – to raise capital through a new listing regime.
“The new listing regime offers a third option for us” that could accelerate the artificial intelligence and location tracking start-up’s access to capital by two years, Chan said in an interview with South China Morning Post. “It will be faster and easier for us to raise funds, as long as we can achieve the valuation needed, even if we fail to reach the income or profit targets. This is really very good news for us”.
