Biotech-led boom as 8 China firms flock to Hong Kong’s thriving stock market

Eight mainland China-based companies – five of them biotech firms – passed listing hearings on the Hong Kong stock market in April, clearing the way for them to tap the city’s deep liquidity.

The influx, including an AI-driven drug discovery firm, a driverless technology developer and a maker of industrial robots, comes as the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has been pushing private firms to list in Hong Kong. The market regulator has required companies that established so-called “red-chip structures” – offshore holding vehicles typically set up in places like the Cayman Islands to control China-based businesses – before 2023 to reincorporate on the mainland and pursue Hong Kong share offerings.

Among the notable applicants is Metis TechBio, which applied under Chapter 18C, a listing regime for pre-profit specialist technology firms, according to its latest filing with the Hong Kong exchange on Sunday. Jefferies, Deutsche Bank and Citic Securities are joint sponsors of the deal.

Founded in 2020 in Hangzhou, in eastern China’s Zhejiang province, Metis operates in China and the United States. It uses three proprietary AI platforms to design and optimise drug delivery systems, a term that refers to how medicines are packaged and processed by the body.

Its revenue surged to 105 million yuan (US$15.4 million) last year from 1.48 million yuan a year earlier, while its net loss narrowed to 391.8 million yuan from 499.2 million yuan.

Its leading drug candidate, MTS-004, an orally dissolving tablet for pseudobulbar affect, has completed phase three clinical trials. The company has three other drug candidates in early-stage trials.

Average daily turnover on the Hong Kong stock exchange for the first three months of 2026 was HK$276.7 billion (US$35.3 billion), up 14 per cent from the same period last year, according to data from bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX).

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