Hong Kong pushes iBonds for retail bond market growth

Hong Kong next week will launch another “iBond,” or inflation-linked retail bond for subscription by residents.

Secretary for Financial Services & the Treasury Prof KC Chan said the issuance of the second iBond promotes the further development of the retail bond market. The iBond will be issued on June 22 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on June 25.

The maximum issuance size of the iBond will be $10 billion. It will have a tenor of three years and bond holders will be paid interest once every six months at a rate linked to inflation in Hong Kong, subject to a minimum rate of 1%.

The iBonds will be denominated at $10,000. The subscription period will start at 9am on June 5 and end at 2pm on June 13.

Hong Kong residents can apply for the iBond through any of the placing banks, securities brokers or the Hong Kong Securities Clearing Company.

Different placing institutions can charge different processing fees for application. Bank of China (HK) and HSBC are joint lead managers.