On April 24, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange announced the appointment of Tong Ka-shing to replace Laura Cha as Chairman of the Board. Mr Tong's term as Chairman will end at the same time as his term as a Director.
Source: HKEX announcement
It is reported that he has served as an independent non-executive director of HKEX since 26 April 2023 and will serve until the 2025 general meeting. According to the announcement of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the adult salary of the Tang family is HK $4.55 million.
Tang Jiacheng will take over
Born in 1952, Mr. Tong is a Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Finance, an Honorary Doctorate of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and has served as Chairman of the Listing Committee of the Main Board and GEM of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Partner of KPMG Hong Kong, and Chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong.
It should be noted that the appointment is subject to the written approval of the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
Currently, Mr Tong also serves as Chairman of the Executive Committee and the Risk Management Committee (statutory) of the Board of Directors, Chairman of the Corporate Social Responsibility Committee, the Nomination and Governance Committee and the Remuneration Committee, and a member of the International Advisory Committee and the China Business Advisory Committee, Chairman and Director of the HKEX Foundation Limited, and a member of the Listing Nominating Committee of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Previously, Mr Tong said in his speech at the event that this year and beyond, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission will study narrowing the bid-ask spread of stocks, and have also issued a consultation paper on treasury shares of listed companies, which I believe will help enhance the liquidity and attractiveness of the Hong Kong market.
In addition, HKEX said Laura Cha retired as a director at the end of the 2024 annual general meeting. Taking into account Laura Cha's extensive experience and knowledge of the global financial industry and the Chinese mainland financial market, the Board announces the appointment of Laura Cha as a Senior Advisor to the Board for the period from 25 April 2024 to 24 April 2025. In addition, Laura Cha will continue to serve as Chairman of HKEX's International Advisory Committee and China Advisory Committee.
The first quarterly report of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange was released
On the same day, HKEX released a results announcement showing that HKEX's revenue and other income in the first quarter was HK$5.2 billion, down 6% year-on-year, and net profit in the first quarter was HK$2.97 billion, down 13% year-on-year.
HKEX Chief Executive Officer Tim Chan said: "HKEX has demonstrated strength and resilience in Q1 2024. Despite the weak global macro environment, the Group's derivatives and commodities business continued to perform strongly, with the trading volume of derivatives reaching a new quarterly high. Although the equity market continued to weaken due to macro market sentiment, the average daily turnover in March and April this year has rebounded significantly, indicating a recovery in investor confidence. ”
In addition, the trading volume of Stock Connect continued to rise, with significant increases in trading volume of Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect and Bond Connect, with Bond Connect reaching a new quarterly high. The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has recently announced a number of measures to support the development of Hong Kong's capital market, including expanding the scope of eligible ETFs under Stock Connect, including real estate investment trusts (REITs) under Stock Connect, supporting the inclusion of RMB stock trading counters in Hong Kong Stock Connect, and supporting the listing of leading enterprises in mainland industries in Hong Kong, which will further enhance the attractiveness of Hong Kong's capital market.
"Looking ahead, despite the challenging environment, we remain optimistic about the long-term growth trend of China's economy and the opportunities that can be brought by expanding our connections with capital markets in Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Chen Yiting said.
Four key tasks in the future
Previously, Chan Yiting, who had just taken over as Chief Executive Officer, had already charted the key points and pointed out the direction for HKEX's development in the coming period.
On April 18, Chen Yiting issued an article saying that today's international environment is unpredictable, the international trade market and the capital market are facing increasingly fierce competition, and the preference of enterprises for listing and financing is also changing at all times. In a complex and ever-changing world, resilience is paramount. For HKEX, seizing the opportunities ahead requires a focus on four key areas for the future, including efforts to enhance the liquidity and vibrancy of the Hong Kong market.
First of all, in the context of China's economic transformation, we will continue to give full play to our unique advantages of "connecting China and the world". The center of gravity of the world economy is shifting to Asian countries, and China, as the world's second largest economy, will continue to be the main engine driving global economic development. At present, the investment level of international investors in China still has a lot of room for growth and expansion.
At present, China's economy is undergoing an important structural transformation, with a large number of dynamic companies emerging in emerging industries such as new energy, electric vehicles, artificial intelligence, and biotechnology, and the number of technology companies listed in Hong Kong will increase. At the same time, a large number of middle- and high-income investors in China have also begun to seek diversified asset allocation.
Against this backdrop, HKEX can leverage its unique advantages to provide financing support for the country's economic development, help domestic investors diversify their asset allocation, provide more choices and convenience for global investors to invest in the Chinese market, and promote the internationalisation of the RMB. In the future, HKEX will continue to enhance and expand the Stock Connect mechanism.
Second, HKEX will strive to enhance the liquidity and vibrancy of Hong Kong's market in an increasingly complex international environment. In an international environment of increasing competition and turbulence, customers have put forward higher requirements for the diversification of products and services, which is both a challenge and an opportunity.
HKEX will continue to enhance its listing regime to make the IPO market more diversified and dynamic, expand its listed company resources and enhance its market services, and enhance its market infrastructure to enrich its asset classes and product offerings to facilitate investors to better manage their asset portfolios and hedge risks.
The third focus is on emerging business areas, such as carbon markets and data. In addition to traditional exchange businesses such as the trading and settlement of stocks, bonds and derivatives, there are also huge opportunities in emerging business areas such as carbon markets, ESG products and data analytics.
The fourth focus is on technology empowerment. HKEX has the technical strength and experience to develop its own platforms and solutions: from the paperless reform of the listing process to the launch of FINI, the IPO settlement platform, from the Orion Securities Market trading platform to the London Metal Exchange's (LME) derivatives trading system, LME Select.
"This is also the confidence that we dare to make long-term investments in internal systems and continue to move forward in the direction of independent research and development platforms. Through these self-developed platforms, we will develop more customized solutions, shorten the time to launch new products and services, and ensure that our trading, settlement and risk management systems can respond quickly to changes in the market. Chen Yiting said.
Reviewer: Peng Yong
Editor: Wang Yin Proofreader: Zhang Diange
Producer: Zhang Nan Issued by: Sun Hong