HKEX to allow tech firms with no revenue, no profit to list in Mar: report

The Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) will allow tech companies with no revenue or profit to list after a rule change in March, amid broad reforms taken to consolidate its position as an international financial center, China Media Group (CMG) reported on Sunday, citing an official of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).

Christopher Hui, secretary for HKSAR financial services and the treasury, said on Sunday that the HKEX will adopt new main board listing rules in March to allow listings by technology companies with no revenue or profit, and the move will be conducive to financial integration between Hong Kong and other cities in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), according to a CMG report.

The HKSAR is taking measures to shore up its position as a global financial center by playing a stronger role as a super-connector between the East and West.

Hui said that more than 600 private equity funds have come to Hong Kong, and the HKSAR government will offer tax and other assistance to help relevant funds enter the GBA in a more convenient manner.

Private equity firms' entry into the GBA will also support the growth of Hong Kong's legal and accounting businesses, the official said.

Against a challenging macroeconomic and geopolitical backdrop, the HKEX reported its first annual profit drop in six years, with a 20 percent decline year-on-year in its net profit in 2022.

The asset and wealth management business of Hong Kong amounted to HK$35.5 trillion ($4.52 trillion) as of the end of 2021, with 65 percent of the funding sourced from non-Hong Kong investors, according to a statement by the HKSAR government published on February 22.

Hong Kong's private equity capital under management as of the end of 2022 amounted to $208.3 billion, ranking second in Asia.

In unveiling his 2023-24 budget plan last week, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said that the stock exchange operator will study proposals to optimize its trading mechanism. After consulting the market, the HKEX will introduce a listing regime for advanced technology firms in the first quarter of 2023 to expand the listing channel for issuers, Chan said.

The People's Bank of China, China's central bank, along with four other authorities, jointly issued two statements on Thursday to provide stronger financial support for the construction and development of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin and Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone.

The HKSAR government welcomes the move concerning Qianhai, with the statement setting out 30 measures on sectors including financial reform and innovation, mutual access among financial markets and the facilitation of cross-boundary trade and financing.