The 2025 Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) Future Tech Summit was held in Shenzhen on September 5. Over 700 representatives from Hong Kong-listed companies, prospective IPO candidates, investment institutions, intermediary agencies, and regulatory bodies gathered to discuss the latest opportunities in the tech industry, how the Hong Kong capital market can support the development of the tech sector, and how HKEX can collaborate with the industry to promote the deep integration of technology and capital, among other topics.
Chinese Tech Breakthroughs Attract Global Capital Favor
Participants generally agreed that China's technology industry has achieved exciting breakthroughs over the past year, making significant progress in various frontier fields, which has strengthened global investors' confidence in Chinese assets.
"Earlier this year, Chinese tech companies, represented by DeepSeek, set off a wave of innovation, allowing global investors to rediscover the innovative capabilities of Chinese companies. Upon careful study, they found that Chinese companies have obvious advantages in product quality, cost, efficiency, and full-industry-chain synergy," said Zhang Xiaoyu, Head of Asia Pacific Equity Capital Markets at Morgan Stanley, at the summit.
This has led to sustained inflows of global capital into the Hong Kong stock market to chase Chinese tech companies, making Hong Kong stocks a global focus. HKEX data shows that as of the end of August 2025, the total market capitalization of the Hong Kong stock market was HKD 46.6 trillion, a 47% increase compared to HKD 31.8 trillion in the same period last year. In the first eight months of this year, the average daily turnover for Hong Kong stocks was HKD 248.3 billion, up 132% from HKD 106.8 billion in the same period last year; the average daily turnover for exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the first eight months was HKD 33.7 billion, a 183% increase from HKD 11.9 billion year-on-year.
The Hong Kong IPO market has also performed exceptionally well due to capital pursuit. In the first eight months of 2025, HKEX welcomed 59 new listed companies, a 37% increase from 43 in the same period last year; Hong Kong IPO fundraising reached HKD 134.5 billion, surging 579% from HKD 19.8 billion year-on-year.
"Since the beginning of the year, the sectors where international long-term funds have been continuously increasing their holdings are primarily technology and healthcare companies with R&D capabilities," Zhang Xiaoyu said, adding that international investors have noticeably refocused on the Hong Kong market this year, mainly because many companies with genuine innovative capabilities are listed in Hong Kong.
Chen Yongren, Managing Director of China International Capital Corporation Limited (CICC, 601995.SH), said during a keynote speech that HKEX has already gathered a large number of excellent companies in fields such as new energy vehicles, power batteries, and consumer electronics. Meanwhile, "a large number of robotics companies are either on their way to listing in Hong Kong or have already submitted Hong Kong listing applications through confidential filing." The supply of a large amount of high-quality assets will attract a significant amount of global "smart money."
Industry Optimistic About Sustained Heat in Hong Kong IPOs
Participants believed that a series of market reforms launched by HKEX over the past two years, such as the introduction of the "Fast Track for Tech Companies" and allowing confidential submission of listing applications, have significantly improved the efficiency and experience of listing for companies, injecting new vitality into the Hong Kong market.
"HKEX's process is very transparent and clear. The listing process was much easier than I imagined," said Zhu Zhongyuan, founder of BioMap, at the summit.
Liu Ying, Managing Director and Co-Head of IPO Vetting at HKEX, stated in a keynote speech that HKEX's continuous optimization of listing rules has supported more tech companies to list in Hong Kong. In recent years, technology has become the largest sector in the Hong Kong stock market, accounting for 28%.
"From IPO fundraising amounts, subscription multiples from institutional and retail investors, to post-listing performance, the warmth of the Hong Kong IPO market is clearly felt. Currently, a steady stream of high-quality companies are queuing up to list in Hong Kong, many of which are in the technology and healthcare sectors. It is expected that the Hong Kong market will remain active in the next 6 to 12 months," Zhang Xiaoyu said.
Chen Yongren also believes that Hong Kong IPO fundraising amounts and index trends have shown a good rebound trend this year, but there is still a significant gap from historical highs. The current Hong Kong market is still in its early stages and will continue to grow subsequently.
