New York City loses IPO crown to Hong Kong

New York City has lost its position as the world’s top initial public offering (IPO) market, as the Hong Kong Stock Exchange reclaimed the top spot, according to Refinitive data.

The South China Morning Post, citing Refinitiv, reported Monday that as of Dec. 21, Hong Kong’s main board owned a 17.6 percent share of the global IPO market, with 125 companies raising $36.5 billion – the highest since 2010 and up 175 percent from last year.

In the same time frame, the New York Stock Exchange had 64 IPOs worth $28.9 billion for a 13.9 percent share.

Hong Kong was the No. 1 market in 2015 and 2016, years in which the exchange attracted mainly manufacturing and financial firms.

The Asian bourse’s improvement followed the largest reforms in 25 years, allowing pre-revenue biotech firms and dual-class shareholding companies to list.