HKEX Insight

Hong Kong is a leading fundraising hub. Between 2014 and 2024, companies have raised a total of US$305 billion via IPOs at HKEX, making it the top location globally over the past ten years.

2024 was a strong year for Hong Kong ECM fundraising, with the world’s 2nd largest IPO, and five out of 10 of the world’s largest equity-linked offerings. And that strength has continued through 2025, with Hong Kong ECM activity firing on all cylinders, witnessing record oversubscriptions and the largest quarterly fundraising (US$20.5bn) since Q2 2021.

New energy companies are a key driver of this growth. Hong Kong recently hosted jumbo-sized follow-on offerings from two leading companies in the sector with the offerings ranking in the world's top three largest follow-ons in Q1 2025, and their performance underscores HKEX’s efficient post-IPO fundraising mechanisms, which are particularly attractive to capital-intensive sectors such as electric vehicles and renewable energy.

As well as robust, regulated markets and the free flow of capital, Hong Kong is the only market in the world where new energy companies looking to fund their growth ambitions can access a large pool of local and global retail and institutional investors, as well as the sizeable, fast-growing investor base in Mainland China.

Institutional investors from across the world are key players in the market, and they have been increasing their exposure to Hong Kong-listed new energy companies.

According to Refinitiv, institutional investors raised their holdings by more than four times US$12 billion at the end of 2015 to US$51 billion as of February 2025. Asian institutional investors are also increasingly active, growing their new energy holdings from US$4 billion in 2015 to around US$18 billion in February 2025, with Chinese funds accounting for approximately 15% of total institutional exposure as of February 2025.

Mainland China capital is also increasingly influential in Hong Kong’s markets, and particularly in the new energy space.

Since launching in 2014, Southbound Stock Connect has expanded in scope, coverage and influence, with Southbound trading as a percentage of total trading in the Hong Kong market growing to 17.3% in 2024. New energy investment as a percentage of total Southbound holdings reached around 20% at the end of 2024, according to HKEX estimates.

Over the past decade, HKEX has continuously enhanced its listing regime to attract high-growth and innovative companies – including many in the new energy sector. Landmark changes in 2018 introduced new chapters allowing pre-revenue biotech firms, dual-class share structures, and secondary listings for overseas issuers.

In 2023, HKEX launched Chapter 18C, a dedicated pathway for Specialist Technology Companies, including those in new energy, advanced materials, and environmental protection.

Chapter 18C offers tailored listing criteria, specifically to accommodate companies like those in the new energy sector that are developing breakthrough technologies.

The criteria recognise the long R&D cycles and capital-intensive nature of innovation by allowing pre-revenue or early-revenue firms to list based on alternative benchmarks. Companies can qualify through high R&D spending, third-party investment validation, and a lower market cap threshold.

This framework empowers innovators to access public funding earlier, accelerating commercialisation and scaling of transformative energy technologies that support global decarbonisation goals and making Hong Kong an increasingly attractive destination for companies seeking growth capital in a transparent, globally-connected market.

During the past twelve months, many early-stage issuers have taken advantage of strong liquidity to raise capital, including companies involved in robotics, autonomous driving and the application of AI to pharmaceutical and renewable energy.

In recent years, the Hong Kong government, HKEX and other market stakeholders have taken decisive steps to improve the liquidity and vibrancy of the city’s markets.

Steps taken include cutting stamp duties, reducing market data fees, implementing severe weather trading, carrying out new enhancements to the Connect programmes, enhancing position limits and introducing a new treasury share regime.

This rising tide lifts all market participants, and new energy issuers are no exception, as a listing in Hong Kong enables them to take part in equity markets that saw average daily trading (ADT) increase 26% year-on-year in 2024 to HK$131.8 billion, and jump 144% year-on-year to HK$242.7 billion in ADT in Q1 2025, according to HKEX statistics.

HKEX offers a comprehensive equity product ecosystem that supports capital formation and investor engagement from day one - an especially valuable advantage for new energy companies navigating rapid growth and evolving market dynamics.

Upon listing, investors gain immediate access to a wide array of structured products, including stock options, index futures, and derivative warrants. These instruments enhance liquidity, facilitate price discovery, and attract a broader investor base.

For new energy firms, which often face volatile input costs and regulatory shifts, these tools also enable sophisticated risk management and hedging strategies, empowering companies to manage capital efficiently while maintaining investor confidence in a fast-moving, innovation-driven sector.

The long-term outlook for new energy companies and the sector’s issuer ecosystem in Hong Kong looks positive. Global megatrends such as industrial decarbonisation, energy efficiency and the rise of EVs are reshaping industries and creating vast opportunities for companies focused on sustainable technologies and solutions.

Further, we can expect new eras of innovation to come.

New advances in solar cells, battery technology and smart grids have created exciting possibilities, and we believe there are more to come in areas such as green hydrogen, advanced energy storage systems, EV-related verticals, AI energy management applications and fusion energy.

And in such a dynamic environment, we look forward to connecting investors with cutting-edge companies at the forefront of the green transition, fostering a more resilient, sustainable and innovative global economy and increasing the vibrancy of Hong Kong’s financial markets.