According to an exclusive interview with Nelly Pai, Managing Director and Head of Hong Kong IPOs and Corporate Finance at JPMorgan Chase, new regulations recently issued by Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to regulate sponsors provide reasonable and sustainable requirements. The rules clarify the maximum number of new listings that key personnel at sponsors can handle. Pai believes this will not prevent high-quality companies from pursuing listings in Hong Kong. She expects the pace of new listings to become healthier this year, with the number of large IPOs raising $1 billion or more not falling below the 2025 level.

Previously, an SFC circular highlighted a decline in the work quality of some sponsors, with some taking on far more new listing projects than they could manage. The most extreme case involved one individual handling 19 projects simultaneously. Some investment banks were also overly reliant on non-local staff lacking experience in Hong Kong IPOs and outsourced excessive work to external professionals such as lawyers and accountants. It is understood that 13 sponsors recently received warning letters from the SFC due to such deficiencies.

Commenting on the SFC's measures, Pai stated the message is clear: if a sponsor handles six or more IPOs concurrently, it is considered under-resourced. The market can interpret this as a maximum of five simultaneous IPOs per key individual. She reiterated that the circular serves to strengthen and clarify existing guidance rather than representing a sudden tightening of rules.

When asked if talent drain contributed to investment banks being overloaded, Pai declined to comment on peers' practices. She pointed out that the core issue lies in different institutions potentially having different priorities regarding "quantity" versus "quality." She emphasized that the quality of companies seeking listings in Hong Kong remains very high and that pursuing a quality-driven market is the sustainable long-term approach.

Pai further added that the SFC's new measures will not impact the ability of quality enterprises to list in Hong Kong. Instead, the IPO pace is expected to become more rational and healthy. In 2025, there were eight large IPOs each raising $1 billion (approximately HK$7.8 billion) or more, totaling $18.3 billion (approximately HK$142.7 billion) in funds raised. Based on current information, the number of such large IPOs this year will certainly not be fewer than in 2025, indicating the new listing market remains very active.

Media reports estimate at least 15 potential IPOs planning to list in Hong Kong this year, each aiming to raise over $1 billion. These include companies such as a core supplier to Nvidia and leading high-end PCB manufacturer Shenghong Technology, as well as major optical communication module maker Zhongji Chuangxu. Conservatively estimated, these 15 potential listings could raise over HK$200 billion collectively.

Pai also noted that as of February 11 this year, 20 companies had already priced their IPOs and listed in Hong Kong, raising $9.4 billion (approximately HK$73.3 billion). This figure exceeds the $8.5 billion raised during the same period in the buoyant market of 2021, indicating a strong start to the year. The follow-on offering market continues to be active. After raising $66 billion in 2025, the amount raised so far this year has already reached one-third of the 2025 total.