PricewaterhouseCoopers: Hong Kong's IPO market is expected to pick up this year, with more TMT companies potentially listing in Hong Kong.

Recently, Cai Zhifeng, the mainland media industry partner at PwC, stated that last year, due to factors such as global economic uncertainty, fundraising activities in the Hong Kong stock market slowed down. However, with the market gradually improving, the Hong Kong IPO market is expected to pick up this year, with more technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT) companies going public. Since the beginning of this year, the Hong Kong IPO market has been warming up continuously. According to the information from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange website, as of February 22, a total of 28 companies have submitted applications to the HKEX. Among them, 14 companies applied in January and 14 companies in February up to now. In addition, data from Wind shows that as of February 22, there are 68 listing applications being processed by the HKEX. In order to enhance the attractiveness of the Hong Kong capital market, the HKEX has introduced multiple market reforms. In March last year, the Chapter 18C was added to provide a pathway for special technology companies to list on the main board of Hong Kong. In January this year, the GEM listing reform was implemented. Cai Zhifeng believes that these measures will help diversify the development of the Hong Kong capital market and demonstrate the determination of the HKEX to attract technology companies to list in Hong Kong. Cai Zhifeng believes that with the disappearance of various unstable factors and the recovery of market demand, coupled with the advantages of a stable capital market and various regulatory reforms and optimization measures, the Hong Kong market will continue to attract special technology companies to go public. As for the prospects of Middle Eastern companies listing in Hong Kong, Zhou Weiran, the global technology, media, and telecommunications industry partner at PwC, believes that Hong Kong has always encouraged overseas companies to go public as an international market. However, various macro and objective factors need to be considered. He mentioned that fund companies are active in the Middle East and hopes that a Middle Eastern company will list in Hong Kong this year.