Hong Kong’s buoyant stock market is not only good news for brokers and investment bankers; it also helps raise more money for charity, according to exchange data.
The charity foundation of bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing raised HK$78 million (US$10 million) in the first half of this year, up 160 per cent from HK$30 million in the same period a year earlier.
A key source of funding for the foundation came from the increase in the number of new listings this year. The exchange runs a programme, introduced in November 1999, that allows main board companies to choose a stock code with an auspicious number or special meaning if they donate HK$3 million.
Funds raised from Hong Kong initial public offerings (IPOs) soared almost sixfold in the first eight months of this year to HK$134.5 billion, according to exchange data. The number of new listings rose 37 per cent from 43 to 59 during the period, providing more candidates to donate to the foundation in exchange for an ideal stock code number.
Further, the outlook for the IPO market is strong with more than 200 companies having filed applications to list in the city. Since its establishment in 2020, the foundation has donated over HK$600 million to charity and supported 130 community projects.
“HKEX is not just a listed corporate, but we have a public duty to run our markets to support the real economy, and we want to give back and connect with the people in our home market,” HKEX chairman Carlson Tong Ka-shing said in an interview in June.
