Building a World Leading Healthcare Fundraising Ecosystem

Since the first healthcare listings in the late 1980s, Hong Kong has evolved into a world-leading fundraising hub for the sector.

What began as a pharmaceutical-focused market has grown into a diverse, innovation-driven ecosystem featuring companies in cutting-edge fields including innovative therapeutics, digital health, medical devices and AI-powered medtech and drug discovery.

The introduction of listing rules to enable the listing of pre-revenue biotech companies (Chapter 18A) in 2018 marked a turning point for Hong Kong’s healthcare markets.

At the end of 2017, Hong Kong’s healthcare market included 107 listed companies with a market capitalisation of US$144 billion. By mid-2025:

• The number of listed companies has more than doubled
• Three-month average daily turnover has quadrupled
• Market capitalisation and total IPO fundraising has tripled

Since the launch of Chapter 18A, biotech has become the fastest-growing healthcare sub-sector at HKEX.

A total of 73 Chapter 18A companies – spanning antibody, small molecule, vaccines, AI and innovative medical devices, surgical robots and cell therapy – have raised US$16 billion through IPOs, and US$10 billion through follow-on fundraisings, between the end of 2017 and 30 June 2025, according to HKEX data. During that period, the market capitalisation of healthcare sector issuers rose from US$144 billion to US$441 billion.

The sector's evolution has been further shaped by digital transformation and next-gen healthtech.

The launch of Chapter 18C in March 2023 expanded access to capital for pre-commercial healthcare innovators, including AI drug discovery and advanced diagnostics firms, by recognising innovation, credible commercialisation and third-party investment.

Thanks to these listing regime enhancements, Hong Kong now hosts a diverse and dynamic healthcare ecosystem.

As of mid-2025, 255 healthcare companies are listed across the full spectrum – from pharmaceuticals and biotech to contract X organisations, medical devices and services – cementing the city's role as a world-class fundraising hub for healthcare innovation.

The transformative regulatory reforms are only part of Hong Kong’s healthcare growth story. Equally important is the participation of a diverse investor base – including global institutional funds, healthcare specialist funds, regional investors and capital from Mainland China.

Institutional investor engagement has surged. Their holdings in the top 30 Hong Kong-listed healthcare companies by market capitalisation grew from US$13.3 billion in 2017 to US$43.0 billion as of 30 June 2025, according to Refinitiv data. Biotech, in particular, has seen rising institutional interest since 2017, accounting for 34% of institutional holdings as of H1 2025.  

Mainland Chinese institutional investors have also become key players in the healthcare sector, and their share of the combined market capitalisation of the 30 largest Hong Kong-listed healthcare companies rose from 6% in 2017 to 44% by June 2025 – growing in value from US$854 million to US$16.9 billion, according to Refinitiv data. Several Chinese funds now rank among the sector’s largest institutional shareholders.

This convergence of regulatory enhancements, high-quality innovative listings and strong investor participation has driven exceptional performance in Hong Kong’s healthcare funding market in recent months.

Ten healthcare companies listed in Hong Kong in H1 2025, raising US$2.1 billion and averaging first-day gains of 30.4%, making the city the top global market for healthcare IPO funds raised.

Follow-on activity by healthcare sector issuers in Hong Kong has also been brisk, with 27 follow-on issues in H1 2025 raising US$3.9 billion, exceeding funds raised in each of FY 2024, FY 2023 and FY 2022.

With market capitalisation of US$441 billion as of June 2025, the Hong Kong-listed healthcare sector’s strong momentum looks set to continue.

Mainland China’s biotech industry is rapidly evolving as well. Propelled by regulatory reforms, venture capital inflows and accelerated clinical trials, it now contributes over 20% of global drug candidates, according to research by Clarivate, and it is attracting major multinational partnerships.

Globally, healthcare is experiencing sustained growth, driven by demographic shifts such as ageing populations and rising birth rates in some countries. Technological advances – from AI to robotics – are transforming care delivery, while heightened awareness of viral threats is spurring innovation and the emergence of high-potential healthcare firms worldwide.

As these companies expand, they seek deep, diverse, and liquid markets – making Hong Kong’s world-class fundraising platforms increasingly vital.

With 39 healthcare companies holding active A1 filings as of 25 August 2025, including 17 under Chapter 18A, Hong Kong’s healthcare ecosystem is poised for continued growth.