Chinese-funded brokerages dominate the top six spots in the first quarter's Hong Kong stock IPO sponsorship rankings.

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Reporter Yu Hong

Since this year began, equity financing in the Hong Kong stock market has been active. Data from Wind Information shows that in the first quarter, the total equity financing amount in the Hong Kong stock market was HKD 147.408 billion, up 12.53% year over year; among them, IPOs were especially active, with the total fundraising amount reaching HKD 109.927 billion, up 488.81% year over year.

As equity financing in the Hong Kong stock market has “heated up,” it has brought abundant opportunities for CICC-related business expansion to Chinese securities firms. Data show that in the first quarter (based on issuance date, the same applies below), among sponsor institutions in the Hong Kong stock market, Chinese securities firms took the top six spots on the IPO sponsorship quantity rankings.

Specifically, in the first quarter, the sponsor institution with the most listings sponsored was CICC Hong Kong Securities, which co-sponsored 10 companies to complete their IPOs; second was CITIC Securities (Hong Kong), with sponsorship for 7 companies to complete their IPOs; CITIC Lyon Securities sponsored 5 companies, and Guotai Junan Financing, Huatai Financial Holdings (Hong Kong), and China Merchants Securities (Hong Kong) each sponsored 4 companies.

In terms of equity underwriting business performance, in the first quarter, CICC Hong Kong Securities participated in the equity underwriting of 15 companies, raising a total of HKD 12.515 billion, with a market share of 12.48%, firmly maintaining the industry’s number one position. Chinese brokerage subsidiaries such as Huatai Financial Holdings (Hong Kong) and CITIC Securities (Hong Kong) also performed well. In the first quarter, the equity underwriting fundraising amounts were HKD 9.678 billion and HKD 6.743 billion, respectively; the equity underwriting fundraising amounts of CITIC Lyon Securities and China Merchants Securities (Hong Kong) were both over HKD 3 billion.

“Equity financing in the Hong Kong stock market has been active, and it is expected to bring more development opportunities for Chinese securities firms.” Zhang Cuixia, Chief Investment Advisor at Jufeng Investment, told reporters of Securities Daily. First, in the first quarter, IPO fundraising in the Hong Kong stock market saw a significant year-over-year increase. This level of activity creates broad space for brokerage business expansion, and can directly drive brokerage sponsorship and underwriting business revenue. Second, amid the current “A+H” listing wave of Chinese enterprises, Chinese securities firms, leveraging their deep understanding of the needs of domestic enterprises and their ability to jointly mobilize resources across domestic and overseas markets, have gradually formed distinct competitive advantages. Finally, by participating in a variety of equity financing projects in the Hong Kong stock market, Chinese securities firms can hone their cross-border business capabilities, accumulate business experience, and further strengthen the foundation for international development.

Currently, international business has become an important engine for performance growth for Chinese securities firms. Data show that in 2025, the overseas business revenues of eight listed securities firms were all above RMB 1 billion, and the overseas business revenue year-over-year growth rates of seven listed securities firms were above 40%.

To seize performance growth opportunities, Chinese securities firms are stepping up their deployment in the Hong Kong stock market. For example, on February 3, Huatai Securities announced that it plans to issue H-share convertible bonds with a total principal amount of HKD 10 billion. The proceeds are planned to be used for overseas business development and supplementing working capital. On February 10, Northeast Securities received approval to invest HKD 500 million to establish a subsidiary in Hong Kong, China. On March 12, GF Securities announced that it plans to increase capital to its subsidiary, GF Holdings (Hong Kong) Company Limited, by no more than HKD 6.101 billion.

In response, Zhang Cuixia said that in recent years, brokerages have increased their efforts to develop in the Hong Kong stock market in essence by applying to establish subsidiaries in Hong Kong, and by making additional capital injections into their subsidiaries in Hong Kong, among other measures. Fundamentally, this is about seizing the dividend from the recovery of IPOs in Hong Kong, and it is also a strategic deployment to build cross-border financial service capabilities.

Looking ahead to the international development direction of Chinese securities firms, Zhao Xijun, Co-Director of the Research Institute of China’s Capital Markets at Renmin University of China, told reporters of Securities Daily: “In the future, Chinese securities firms should further increase their strategic investment in the Hong Kong stock market, continuously improve their license and permit layout, strengthen business synergy, and seize the development opportunities brought by the ‘A+H’ two-market listing trend for mainland enterprises. They should further link customer resources—relying on the Hong Kong stock market as a base—to expand services such as cross-border financing and asset allocation, and strengthen their cross-border one-stop service capabilities, so as to extend their service network to a broader international stage.”

（Source: Securities Daily）

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