Hong Kong's thriving IPO scene threatened as retail investors pull out

Retail-book ratio plunged to a two-year low.

Bloomberg reports that Hong Kong’s blockbuster IPO year may be put at risk as retail subscription plunged to its weakest showing since January 2016 with individual investors placing orders for an average of only 28.7 times of shares initially available in July. 

Also read: Can back-to-back blockbuster IPOs live up the hype? 

Six out of 21 offerings in July also relied heavily on institutions after failing to attract significant retail interest, pushing the ratio of undersubscribed deals to the highest level since November 2016.

Slumping stock market and higher borrowing costs are suppressing mom-and-pop’s appetite for new listings, Bloomberg noted.

Also read: Thriving IPO scene under threat as the Mainland eyes similar bourse reforms

Heating trade tensions between the US and China are also showing signs of hurting smaller deals brought about by a liquidity shortage.

China’s Qeeka Home, a provider of online interior design services, earlier postponed a US$278m Hong Kong IPO, whilst Uxin, a Chinese second-hand car sales site, halved the size of its planned New York float to US$225m citing challenging market conditions.

Here’s more from Bloomberg.