List with HKEX

HKEX is a China anchored and globally connected exchange. Hong Kong opens the key gateway between China and international markets. Stock Connect provides a convenient and effective cross-border market connecting China with the world. We have access to a diverse and global investor base with both institutional and retail investors.

Our success as a global premier exchange is also credited to transparent listing rules and a well-tested listing regime. Moreover, we provide convenient post-IPO fund raising channels to promote the continued development of companies.

Hong Kong, as a compelling listing and fundraising venue, accommodates IPO transactions of all sizes, including mega IPOs, and has a track record of securing robust investor demand to price a successful transaction. We retained the global IPO fundraising crown in 2019 and ranked No.1 for seven times in the past 11 years.

Primary and Secondary Listings 

Overseas companies may choose to apply for a primary or secondary listing on the Exchange.  Primary listed companies normally trade all or the majority of their listed equity securities on the Exchange and need to fully comply with the Listing Rules, unless specifically waived.

Secondary listed companies are primarily listed on another stock exchange and the majority of their equity securities are usually traded outside Hong Kong.  As they already comply with the rules of their primary exchange, we grant them extensive waivers from our Listing Rules. Secondary listings are permitted on the Main Board (but not GEM) if the exchange of the applicant’s primary listing provides standards of shareholder protection which are at least equivalent to those provided in Hong Kong.

Also, with the exception of Qualifying Issuers (see “Qualifying Issuers” section below), a secondary listing applicant must have a “centre of gravity” outside Greater China.

An overseas company can, alternatively, opt for a dual-primary listing where it is subject to both full requirements here and those of another market.

Qualifying Issuers 

Qualifying Issuers are issuers primary listed on a Qualifying Exchange (i.e. the New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq Stock Market or the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange (and belonging to the UK Financial Conduct Authority's "Premium Listing" segment)). Qualifying Issuers are subject to additional and modified requirements of Chapter 19C of the Main Board Listing Rules.

Listing by introduction

An overseas company that is already listed on another stock exchange may list in Hong Kong by introduction through dual-primary or secondary listing without a fund raising. This form of listing is appropriate for applicant that has a wide shareholder base and does not wish to incur additional listing expenses for a fund raising.

The Hong Kong Listing Rules allow the listing of companies incorporated in Hong Kong, China, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands (the “Recognised Jurisdictions”). Companies incorporated in other jurisdictions may list on the Exchange if they can demonstrate to the Exchange that their jurisdiction of incorporation has standards of shareholder protection which are at least equivalent to those provided in Hong Kong or if they amend their constitutional documents to provide the required standards of shareholder protection.
The key shareholder protection standards required are set out in the Joint Policy Statement Regarding the Listing of Overseas Companies issued by HKEX and the SFC, which was last updated in 2018 (the “Joint Policy Statement”).

A list of jurisdictions approved by HKEX as acceptable places of incorporation (the “Acceptable Jurisdictions”) can be found here.

A potential Hong Kong IPO applicant would expect to go through three different stages before its stock can be listed and traded with HKEX, namely application preparation; regulatory vetting and approval; and marketing and listing.

The professional parties involved in a typical Hong Kong IPO include sponsor and compliance adviser, underwriter, legal adviser for each the sponsor and the applicant, and reporting accountant. In many Hong Kong IPOs, additional services may be required to be provided by professional parties such as industry consultant, property/ special asset valuer, internal control adviser, financial printer and public relations firm.

The actual listing timetable depends on many factors, including the progress of due diligence, preparation of application materials, regulatory approval and conditions of the capital market.

Application preparation

The application preparation mainly involves engagement of professional working parties and due diligence works by licensed sponsors, legal advisers (for the applicant and the sponsors), auditors and other third parties (e.g. tax consultants, internal control advisers, etc.), drafting and preparation of the application materials. The length of preparation time depends on the readiness of the applicant’s track record and other conditions. It is required by the Listing Rules that an IPO applicant should appoint sponsor(s) at least 2 months before submission of its IPO application (A-1 filing). However, the preparation process may take longer as the professional intermediaries require more time to conduct due diligence depending on the circumstances of the applicant e.g. the industry it operates in, the size of its business operations may extent to many other jurisdictions, etc.

Regulatory vetting and approval

After performing adequate due diligence on the applicant by the sponsor, the applicant is required to submit the formal listing application (Form A1 for Main Board and Form 5A for GEM), an application proof of listing document and other related materials to the Listing Division of the Exchange for regulatory vetting. The vetting time for each applicant is subject to case-specific factors, including the complexity of the applicant’s business as well as whether there are any novel issues. The valid period for a listing application from the submission to the listing date is six month. A monthly Progress Report  for new listing applications is published on HKEX news website.

Marketing and listing

After the Exchange’s Listing Committee approves the listing application, the applicant could commence the marketing of its securities which will ordinarily be approximately one month (for investors roadshows, public offering process and pricing etc.) before the securities can be listed and traded on the Exchange.

It is a collaboration between the Hong Kong, Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges. This allows mainland Chinese investors to purchase eligible equities in Hong Kong, and international investors to buy China A shares listed on the mainland in a less restrictive way through the trading and clearing facilities of their home exchange.

According to the rules of Shanghai Stock Exchange and Shenzhen Stock Exchange, the stocks eligible for the Southbound Trading include:

1. The constituents of Hang Seng Composite LargeCap Index;
2. The constituents of Hang Seng Composite MidCap Index;
3. The constituents of Hang Seng Composite SmallCap Index with an average month-end market capitalization of at least HKD 5 billion in the 12 months prior to the deadline for periodic review of the index; or, if the constituent stock has been listed within the 12 months prior to the periodic review of the relevant index, its market capitalization at the time of listing shall be no less than HKD 5 billion (for Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect Only); and
4. SEHK-listed H shares of A+H companies that are dual-listed in the Mainland and Hong Kong.

Besides, companies with Weighted Voting Rights (WVR) structures, upon satisfaction of various prerequisites, can also be included into the eligible stocks under Southbound Stock Connect.

Traditionally, Hong Kong-listed H-share companies have both “foreign shares”, meaning shares issued and tradable in Hong Kong, and “domestic shares” or shares held by pre-IPO Mainland China investors that were previously non-tradable before the H-share full circulation programme became effective in November 2019. The previously non-tradable “domestic shares” can now be converted into tradable shares in Hong Kong, once certain approvals and procedures have been obtained/completed.

Key benefits to issuers include:

1. Increase the overall liquidity of H-share listed companies;
2. Better alignment of shareholders’ interests to improve corporate governance;
3. New financing possibilities brought by pledging of H-shares converted from domestic shares; and
4. Set valuation benchmark for China State-owned equity assets.

In the context of preparing a potential applicant for listing, if the issuer and its professional advisers have queries regarding the interpretation of the Listing Rules which are novel and specific, the issuer or the professional advisers may contact the Listing Division to seek confidential guidance at an early stage before the submission of formal listing application, i.e. to submit a pre-IPO enquiry. This can provide the potential applicant with a level of certainty in relation to the issue and help it make the decision whether to list in Hong Kong. A pre-IPO enquiry is not a means to pre-vet a listing application.

For pre-IPO enquiries, you may refer to the following link to find a detailed contact list here.

WVR means voting power attached to a share of a particular class that is greater or superior to the voting power attached to an ordinary share, or other governance right or arrangement disproportionate to the beneficiary’s economic interest in the equity securities of the issuer.

Confidential filing entitles companies in specific situations to file its application proof confidentially (i.e. its application proof listing document does not need to be published on HKEXnews website). Confidential filing applies to an applicant (i) which has already been listed on a recognised overseas exchange for at least five years and has a large market capitalization; or (ii) applying for secondary listing under Chapter 19C of the Main Board Listing Rules[1].

Footnote [1]: 19C issuers must have a track record of good regulatory compliance of at least two full financial years on a Qualifying Exchange.

Stock Code Balloting Scheme - Each issuer that is approved for listing is invited to select a stock code. Five stock codes will be drawn by the Exchange from a pool of 50 available stock codes (Normal Ballot Pool), and the issuer may choose one from the five stock codes. Since November 1999, the Exchange has launched the Stock Code Balloting for Charity Scheme to raise money for worthwhile causes as the demand for auspicious codes for new listings increased and HKEX sought to encourage more donations to charity. The Exchange does not charge for the Stock Code Balloting Scheme.

Effective since 1 July 2020, under the updated Stock Code for Charity Scheme, if a successful listing candidate or product issuer has a preference for a particular code – available either in the Normal Ballot Pool or Special Pool (i.e., numbers deemed to be auspicious) subject to prevailing Stock Code Allocation Plan – it may choose one stock code without going through the balloting process. In this instance, a donation of HK$3 million and HK$2 million will be required for each security of Main Board and GEM company respectively, while a donation of HK$1 million will be required for each Exchange Traded Product (including Exchange Traded Fund and Leveraged & Inverse Product).

All donations made by successful listed issuers will go to HKEX Foundation Limited (HKEX Foundation), a recognised charitable institution which is exempt from tax under section 88 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance in Hong Kong. For information about HKEX Foundation’s philanthropic initiatives, please refer to the HKEX Group website.

Standard Listing Ceremony Process is a Market Open Ceremony (MOC) to provide a unique opportunity to celebrate the companies’ IPO milestone and experience the exciting atmosphere live from the Exchange. Directors and VIPs will have the opportunity to experience the start of the trading day by striking the “gong”.

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Virtual Listing Ceremony is an alternative way for companies to celebrate their IPO achievement. It includes bespoke video productions and a simulated countdown and gong-strike.

The major derivatives products are Single Stock Options/Futures, Derivative Warrants (DW), Callable Bull/Bear Contract (CBBC) and any index products the stock is linked to.

For the eligibility criteria for options and futures, the underlying stock should be listed on SEHK for either:

1. 60 consecutive HK Business Days during which dealing in the underlying stock has not been suspended; or
2. not more than 70 consecutive Hong Kong Business Days comprising 60 Hong Kong Business Days during which dealing in the underlying stock has not been suspended; and
3. with the minimum public float capitalisation of the stock of HK$4 billion. If the public float capitalisation of the stock exceeds HK$10 billion, requirements (a) and (b) above may be exempted.

The list of Designated Securities for short selling is revised on a quarterly basis. An automatch stock may be designated by the Exchange as Designated Security if it is included in any one or more of the following categories:

Stocks

1. all constituent stocks of indices which are the underlying indices of equity index products traded on the Exchange/HKFE; or
2. stocks eligible for structured product issuance (pursuant to Rule 15A.35 of the Main Board Listing Rules) or underlying stocks of Structured Product traded on the Exchange; or
3. stocks with market capitalisation of not less than HK$3 billion and a past 12-month aggregate turnover to market capitalisation ratio of not less than 60%; or
4. stocks that have been listed on the Exchange for not more than 60 trading days, with a public float capitalisation of not less than HK$20 billion for 20 consecutive trading days (starting from the second day of their listing) and an aggregate turnover of not less than HK$500 million; or

Other Securities

1. all securities traded under the Pilot Program; or
2. ETF/applicable Market Making Securities approved by the Board of HKEX; or

Options/ Futures

1. all underlying stocks of stock options traded on the Exchange; or
2. all underlying stocks of Stock Futures Contracts traded on HKFE.

If the stocks of an issuer being traded on the Exchange are in more than one currency under different stock codes, the stocks traded under all stock codes will be considered as a single automatch stock and the above figures are calculated on a combined basis.