Chinese tea shop giant Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial aims to raise HK$2.5 billion (US$330 million) in a Hong Kong initial public offering, set to be the city’s largest new-share sale of the year, regulatory filings show.

Philippine chain Hotel101 Global targets 1 million rooms and a presence in more than 100 countries after signing an agreement to merge with a Hong Kong company, which aims to list on Nasdaq in New York.

Amid rising geopolitical tensions, most of the top 30 investors that invested in Chinese unicorns are based within the country.

There is nothing to fear from missteps because nobody is error-free, Ma wrote, after his co-founder Joe Tsai touched on Alibaba’s mistakes in a podcast interview, generating a frenzy on China’s social media.

The numbers do not lie, Hong Kong’s financial regulators told the HSBC Global Investment Summit on Tuesday. The city’s market has shown resilience and competence through several years of economic headwinds.

First-time stock offerings in Hong Kong are expected to improve after a dismal first quarter, according to Deloitte China. Tighter regulatory oversight could hinder bourses in mainland China.

Companies in Saudi Arabis and Indonesia have shown a genuine interest in Hong Kong’s IPO market, Bonnie Chan Yiting, CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, says at a Legislative Council meeting on Monday.

Lack of interest has more to do with lacklustre IPO activity than the reform per se, which will draw more interest when listings pick up, analysts say.

‘The slowdown in IPOs will carry on, and the listing process for mega IPOs is expected to be lengthened,’ an analyst says, as the market watchdog has pledged to improve listing quality.

Swiss agrichemicals and seeds giant Syngenta Group has withdrawn its application for a listing in Shanghai amid China’s slowing equities market.

The increased bonus programme shows the lengths taken by TikTok owner ByteDance to retain and attract talent, even as the company continues to restructure its operations this year.

China’s major stock exchanges are facing a tough start to the year as proceeds from initial public offerings in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Shenzhen shrink. US exchanges are strengthening their lead and ranking.

Paul Chan, Hong Kong’s financial secretary, and Bonnie Chan, the CEO of bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, were speaking at Fortune Innovation Forum 2024.

E-commerce logistics giant Cainiao will launch an ‘entrepreneurship incentive plan’ that will double the bonus pool allocated for its financial year ending March 31, 2025.

Alibaba has scrapped the planned Hong Kong IPO for its logistics unit Cainiao, deciding to double down on its investment in the strategically important unit.

The sell-off follows Shenzhen exchange’s statement that it would take action against Citic for failing to fully clarify issues regarding Liangang Optoelectronic’s IPO prospectus.

Samsonite is exploring a dual listing plan for its shares, a surprise move that tempered market speculation about a potential offer to take the luggage maker private.

LianLian DigiTech aims for a fifth of the US$500 million it originally sought a year ago, as market conditions continue to dampen investor sentiment.

China is tightening the screws on new domestic stock offerings, issuing four documents at once laying out some of the harshest rules, checks and penalties yet to crack down on fake accounting and restore confidence.

The New York-based bank will continue to invest in Hong Kong, betting that the city where it has been doing business for a century can recover when the economic cycle turns, and live up to its potential as the financial centre of the world’s second largest economy.

Economic growth and ‘de-risking’ from China are driving investors to Southeast Asia, but just four companies accounted for nearly half of exit values since 2015.

DreamSmart, the start-up behind smartphone brand Meizu, may seek a valuation of more than US$2 billion for a potential Hong Kong share sale this year, sources say.

M&A activity in the Asia-Pacific region is expected to bounce back by around 10 per cent in the second half of this year after a lacklustre 2023, with India and Japan likely to emerge as winners, EY’s Yew-Poh Mak tells the Post.

Once a lucrative source of fees for investment bankers, new stock offerings have become a source of stress and job insecurity amid a slump in activity. For retail investors, those first-day windfalls are also harder to come by.

Lenovo to increase AI efforts in Hong Kong after survey of global CIOs finds strong embrace of the emerging tech in the city.

Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin urges market authorities to tighten laws to boost investors’ trust and confidence and the review could include extending a ban on short sales to individuals, in a move similar to those made by China and South Korea.

Here is what colleagues and peers say about Hong Kong-born Chan, the first woman and first internal candidate to serve as CEO. How ready is she for the job at a challenging time for the city’s bourse?

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing delivers an 18 per cent jump in 2023 earnings as CEO Nicolas Aguzin ends his tenure after a tumultuous three years. Aguzin will pass the baton to Bonnie Chan on Friday.