Update | Hong Kong loses IPO crown to New York; slips to No 3 globally, first half data shows
Snap Inc’s blockbuster US$3.9 billion IPO in March helped New York to overtake Hong Kong in terms of new share listings during the first half, according to Thomson Reuters
Hong Kong has lost its crown as the world’s favoured destination for companies to raise funds, slipping to the No 3 spot behind New York and Shanghai, amid a dearth of blockbuster listings in the first half, according to preliminary data from Thomson Reuters.
The city’s stock market raised US$5.8 billion worth of IPOs from the start of the year to Friday, a drop of 19.5 per cent from US$7.3 billion in the same period in 2016 when the bourse ranked as the leader for new listings worldwide, according to Thomson Reuters.
The New York Stock Exchange leapt into the top spot, raising US$18.2 billion, partly due to Snap Inc’s IPO in March, which raised US$3.9 billion. The Shanghai Stock Exchange ranked No 2 globally, having raised US$9.6 billion.
Of the funds raised in Hong Kong during the first half, financials accounted for 59 per cent, while technology firms raised only 0.8 per cent, according to Thomson Reuters.
“Hong Kong has lost out to the US as we do not have many new technology or new economy companies while New York has attract these companies. I thus support the stock exchange’s proposal to launch a new board to attract these new economy companies,” said Christopher Cheung Wah-fung, a lawmaker for the financial services sector.
