Hong Kong’s offshore yuan bond market is on track for a record-breaking year as some of mainland China’s largest technology firms prepare for deals, underscoring the city’s push to be a fundraising hub beyond equities.
Corporate issuers have raised a record US$46.2 billion so far this year, according to Bloomberg data. Deutsche Bank estimated that in the dim sum market, annual issuance tripled between 2022 and 2024 to hit 1.4 trillion yuan (US$196.5 billion) last year, adding that it was set for another record in 2025.
Dim sum bonds, which are denominated in yuan and issued outside the mainland, have evolved from a niche product into a key pillar of Beijing’s effort to internationalise its currency. Bankers said the latest boom reflected both cost advantages for issuers thanks to favourable rates and structural reforms that helped broaden the investor base.
“Attractive funding levels and increased liquidity in the offshore yuan dim sum market are thanks to southbound Bond Connect and global investor interest,” said Samuel Fischer, head of China debt capital markets at Deutsche Bank. He noted that in July, Hong Kong expanded access to the Bond Connect to include securities firms, insurers and wealth managers.
“This year’s offshore renminbi bond market has been very active,” Cheung said, adding that the year-to-date issuance stood at around 525 billion yuan, up about 8 per cent from a year earlier.
