Chinese Mainland and Hong Kong IPO Markets 2023 Review and 2024 Outlook

Despite geopolitical uncertainties and weak recovery for a number of major economies, KPMG's latest Chinese Mainland and Hong Kong IPO Markets 2023 Review and 2024 Outlook reveals that the A-share market has once again outperformed its global counterparts, securing the top two positions in global IPO rankings two years in a row. While Hong Kong IPO activities remained sluggish in 2023, the report predicts a rebound this year, which will allow Hong Kong to reclaim its position amongst the top five global IPO rankings in 2024.

During last year, Hong Kong ushered in a suite of strategic listing reforms. The introduction of Chapter 18C helps boost the city’s attractiveness to a wide range of specialist technology companies. The GEM listing reform will enhance GEM's attractiveness for high-growth, high quality start-ups and SMEs across the Greater Bay Area, providing an important alternative source of funding, which coincides with the Hong Kong government’s commitment to supporting SMEs to take their business to the next level.

Hong Kong was also home to Asia’s first-ever Saudi Arabia exchange-traded fund, as the city further strengthens its cooperations with the Middle East. Hong Kong is expected to continue encouraging interconnectivity with the Middle East, which could lead to greater interest in the city’s capital market or potentially cross-border listings of Middle Eastern companies in Hong Kong. These developments will further fortify Hong Kong’s position as one of the premier international financial centres in the world.