Hong Kong back in global IPO spotlight after strongest January in years

Nearly 100 companies filed new listing applications in Hong Kong in January, marking a strong start to 2026 for initial public offering (IPO) activity. A total of 95 companies applied to list on Hong Kong’s main board, while one sought a place on the Growth Enterprise Market, which primarily served smaller and growth-stage firms, according to a report from Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) on Friday. The 96 applications were more than triple the 29 recorded a year earlier, and roughly equal to a fifth of the 466 total in 2025, which was already one of the strongest years for new listings. “January has been one of the strongest months for Hong Kong’s IPO market in recent years,” said Robert Lui, who leads Deloitte China’s offering services for the southern region. “The momentum stems from good market sentiment with a strong pipeline following stellar results in 2025.” Hong Kong reclaimed the world’s top spot for IPOs in 2025 after a slump since its 2021 peak. A total of 114 companies raised US$37.22 billion on the exchange’s main board last year. In January, 12 companies listed in the city, raising US$4.2 billion, up 447 per cent from a year earlier, according to data released by the London Stock Exchange (LSEG) on Friday. Because the 2025 Lunar New Year fell in January, trading days were fewer, amplifying the contrast in fundraising. Tech names continued to dominate. Chinese artificial intelligence start-up MiniMax Group debuted on January 9, raising US$711 million, the largest in Hong Kong and the third biggest IPO globally for the month, according to LSEG. Chinese semiconductor maker OmniVision Integrated Circuit Group raised US$616 million and chip designer GigaDevice Semiconductor raised US$600 million, ranking second and third, respectively, in Hong Kong. Proceeds marked the strongest January since 2021 – when 15 firms, including Chinese short-video platform Kuaishou Technology, raised US$7.6 billion in Hong Kong – making it the second highest on record. That performance put Hong Kong, top-ranked in 2025, second among global exchanges for the month, behind Amsterdam-based Euronext, where Prague-based defence firm Czechoslovak Group raised US$4.5 billion on January 23, the largest since 2006. Policy support – including China’s drive for mainland enterprises to go global and Hong Kong listing regimes such as Chapter 18C, which allows technology companies to list without a track record of revenue and profit – helped sustain the momentum, according to Lui. A strong secondary market was also encouraging companies to rush for listings “when valuations can be higher,” said Kenny Ng Lai-yin, a strategist at Everbright Securities International. On Thursday, the Hang Seng Index briefly crossed 28,000 points, a level last seen in July 2021. “The outlook for 2026 is positive, with Hong Kong’s IPO market likely to set another fundraising record of at least HK$300 billion [US$38.4 billion],” said Lui, who expected main listings to come from the technology, healthcare and consumer sectors. There were 440 companies awaiting listing in Hong Kong, with 26 applications approved and 414 being processed, according to the HKEX report. In January, Nasdaq ranked third with five listings raising US$1.4 billion, while the New York Stock Exchange finished fourth with two firms raising US$818 million, according to LSEG. Shanghai’s Nasdaq-style tech board Star Market ranked fifth with four deals raising US$653 million.