Former HKEX boss Charles Li’s new platform aims to provide finance to 10,000 small companies in mainland China

Micro Connect may need to raise up to 10 billion yuan (US$1.5 billion) as it aims to provide much-needed funds to small businesses and enterprises

International investors can invest through the platform in units that will allow them to share the revenues of the small companies

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Charles Li Xiaojia, former chief executive of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) and co-founder of Micro Connect. Photo: Nora Tam

Published: 11:30am, 15 Aug 2021Updated: 9:49pm, 15 Aug 2021

A new investment platform founded by the former boss of Hong Kong stock exchange is aiming to provide much-needed funds to 10,000 small companies and one-man enterprises in mainland China in its first year.

Micro Connect, launched last week by Charles Li Xiaojia and financier Gary Zhang, may need to raise up to 10 billion yuan (US$1.5 billion) from global investors in order to do this.

“The mission of Micro Connect is to connect very promising small enterprises with global capital,” Li, the former chief executive of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) said in an interview with the Post. “We want to provide the right products for the little guys who, as a sector of the economy, are the biggest employers in the country.

“Our investment in each of the small businesses can range from tens of thousands of yuan to a few million yuan.”

Li did not say exactly how much the firm is targeting from international investors, but assuming they invest an average of 1 million yuan in 10,000 companies, the platform would need to raise 10 billion yuan.

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