This week, Hong Kong made significant strides towards becoming a global hub for regulated digital assets as HashKey, the city’s largest crypto exchange, commenced trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX). The Initial Public Offering (IPO) raised $206 million, drawing considerable interest from both retail and institutional investors.
HashKey’s Historic Listing
HashKey’s IPO, launched on December 9, involved the sale of 240 million shares and received overwhelming support, exceeding expectations on both local and international fronts. The listing emphasized Hong Kong’s strategy to merge robust financial markets with stricter oversight of digital assets amid a global trend of cautious regulatory approaches toward crypto activities.
Shares of HashKey debuted at HK$6.70, approximately $0.86, marking the first instance of a digital asset company in Asia going public via an IPO in Hong Kong. This development sets a precedent for crypto firms looking to access traditional financial markets.
Strong Demand and Investor Interest
The public offering component in Hong Kong saw demand soar, with retail subscriptions nearly 394 times oversubscribed, resulting in the allocation of 24 million shares. The international offering also attracted significant interest, reaching 5.5 times the subscription levels, resulting in 216.5 million shares sold. This enthusiastic response indicates a strong appetite for cryptocurrency-related stocks, despite recent market volatility.
In total, nine cornerstone investors participated in the IPO, bringing institutional credibility to the transaction. Notable contributors included Cithara Global Multi-Strategy SPC, UBS AM Singapore, Fidelity, and CDH, with Cithara and UBS emerging as the largest investors, acquiring approximately 17.5 million and 11.7 million shares, respectively. Their participation suggests confidence in HashKey’s business model and regulatory positioning.
Volatile First Trading Session
Despite the robust fundraising results, HashKey’s first trading day was marked by price fluctuations. During the morning session, shares briefly surged nearly 5% above the opening price, reaching around $0.91, before retracting to a low near $0.78. By the afternoon, the stock was trading slightly below its IPO price at approximately $0.84. This movement underscores a cautious attitude among investors towards newly listed crypto companies while maintaining solid demand for IPO allocations.
Market participants appear to be weighing long-term growth prospects against short-term uncertainties in the global digital asset landscape.
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