In capital markets terms, Hong Kong has long been something of a one-trick pony.
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It never was a debt markets powerhouse, and likely never will be. Its allure lay in equities, and in a seemingly preordained role as the financial bridge between China and the rest of the world.
For years, nothing seemed to deter mainland companies from issuing shares in Hong Kong. Not the street protests that disrupted civic life through 2019, nor the decision to shutter the border with China as soon as Covid struck.
If anything, IPO volumes in the first two years of the pandemic actually improved.
