Hong Kong should and would become the world's biggest fundraising market for biotech companies in the next five to 10 years, says Charles Li Xiaojia, chief executive of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (0388).
The city has become the second-largest market so far, but that is not enough, he said at the 2020 HKEX Biotech Summit.
Li also predicts that the aging population of China, as well as the increasing medical costs, would drive development of biotech.
Meanwhile, Zhang Lei, founder and chief executive of Hillhouse Capital Management, advised investing in biotech for the long-term.
The private equity firm invested in Beigene (6160) in 2012 when the valuation of the company was only less than US$100 million (HK$780 million), but now it exceed US$20 billion, he said.
Also, CanSino Biologics (6185) chief financial officer, Wang Jing, said the company plans to launch the clinical trial for the coronavirus vaccine and expects initial results in three to six months.
HKEX chairwoman Laura Cha Shih May-lung said the proceeds from initial public offerings in Hong Kong surged by 56 percent from a year ago during the first seven months this year, and there are still good IPO plans ahead.
The total market capitalization of Hong Kong stocks grew by 26 percent year-on-year as of the end of July, while the average daily turnover in July surged by 1.4 times from a year ago, she said. The stock market has also attracted issuers from emerging markets like Southeast Asian firms and those from Israel.
