Hong Kong stock market IPOs raise funds at a record pace, hitting a nearly 15-year high; the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong warns of suspicious subscriptions.

In the first three quarters of 2026, the Hong Kong IPO market delivered results far exceeding expectations, with a total of 115 companies listing and total funds raised of HK$385.566 billiona fundraising scale that has already surpassed the full-year level of any year since 2011. Looking ahead to the fourth quarter, Deloitte and KPMG have recently said successively that Hong Kong's full-year IPO fundraising amount has the opportunity to approach HK$500 billion. The hot market has also benefited intermediaries. The reporter noted that the head effect is very pronounced, with the underwriting scale of the top three underwriters combined accounting for 42%. However, the issue of tight resources at sponsor institutions and practice quality remain under regulatory scrutiny. On October 13, the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong said that the current resource tightness has eased somewhat, reflected in the share of listing applications under review held by the five most active sponsors falling from 77% at the beginning of the year to 65% in September; the number of overburdened principal signing persons decreased by 78%. The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong specifically reminded that sponsor institutions should currently be alert to opaque arrangements involving initial public offerings and post-listing activities, which may generate suspicious subscription instructions, artificially inflate demand for shares in initial public offerings, or facilitate trading activities with potential manipulation after listing.