Bank Wealth Management Subsidiaries Venture into the Hong Kong Stock IPO Market

Source: Securities Daily Author: Xiong Yue

Since the beginning of this year, the Hong Kong stock IPO market has continued its hot trend, attracting global investors to rush for high-potential quality targets across various sectors. As one of the sources of funds for IPO “subscribing,” bank wealth management subsidiaries are turning their attention to the Hong Kong IPO market, positioning themselves as cornerstone and anchor investors in “hard technology” to seek higher product returns.

Notably, several bank wealth management subsidiaries have participated in Hong Kong IPO “subscribing,” with some reaping substantial gains. Experts interviewed said that currently, bank wealth management subsidiaries are in a period of deep transformation. Their traditional business model focused on fixed income assets faces bottlenecks, and they urgently need to enhance product yields and differentiate competitiveness through equity investments. The Hong Kong IPO “subscribing” is an excellent low-threshold entry path into the equity market.

Strong Investment Performance

According to data, as of now, bank wealth management subsidiaries such as ICBC Wealth Management (hereinafter “ICBC Wealth”), China Post Wealth Management (hereinafter “China Post Wealth”), and China Merchants Bank Wealth Management (hereinafter “CMB Wealth”) have participated in Hong Kong IPO cornerstone or anchor investments.

Public information shows that since 2025, ICBC Wealth has participated in over 25 Hong Kong IPO investments, with the latest weighted return exceeding 50%. China Post Wealth began deploying in Hong Kong IPOs in 2024, focusing on TMT, advanced manufacturing, emerging consumer sectors, and healthcare. CMB Wealth previously disclosed that it successfully allocated shares of a leading domestic aluminum industry chain enterprise’s new stock, with 11 products involved and over 10 million yuan allocated.

Meanwhile, some bank wealth management subsidiaries involved in Hong Kong IPOs have achieved impressive investment results early in the year.

According to ICBC Wealth, as of January 16, 2026, all 10 of its Hong Kong IPO investments have realized positive returns, with a 100% success rate and a maximum single increase of 165.45%. The projects focus on sectors such as semiconductors, artificial intelligence, biomedicine, and high-end equipment, including domestic storage chip leader GigaDevice, AI pharmaceutical leader Yingxian Smart, domestic GPU core company Biren Technology, and Tianshu Zhixin.

China Post Wealth also has a Hong Kong IPO strategy. Since the beginning of the year, its performance has been outstanding, with cornerstone heavy positions achieving significant gains on the first day. Key projects include memory and interconnect chip leader Lankei Technology, image sensor chip leader OmniVision, as well as investments in chemical new materials company Guoen Technology, MINIMAX, and Biren Technology.

“Hong Kong IPO ‘subscribing’ is becoming an important path for bank wealth management subsidiaries to expand into equity assets and diversify cross-market allocations. Overall participation enthusiasm and market influence continue to grow,” said Zeng Gang, Director of the Shanghai Financial and Development Laboratory.

Xue Hongyan, a special researcher at the Suzhou Commercial Bank, told Securities Daily that, based on current practices, the participation of bank wealth management subsidiaries in Hong Kong IPO “subscribing” has formed a pattern led by top institutions, focusing on hard technology sectors, with product forms extending toward inclusive finance. From the product perspective, products involved in “subscribing” are characterized by a “stable core + excess subscribing” structure, gradually expanding from high-threshold products for private banking clients to inclusive products, allowing ordinary investors to participate in Hong Kong IPO “subscribing.”

Taking ICBC Wealth as an example, the company has launched three “Fixed Income + Hong Kong IPO” strategy products, all rated PR3 (medium risk). Two are sold to private banking clients, and one is open to individual investors via online banks.

Resource Endowment Differences

Experts interviewed believe that with the continuous decline in yields of traditional fixed income assets, bank wealth management urgently needs yield-enhancing tools. The relatively high certainty of returns from A-share and Hong Kong stock “subscribing” makes it an important means for bank wealth management subsidiaries to boost product yields and improve cross-market asset allocation capabilities. Currently, the “subscribing” market shows features of concentration among leading institutions and strategy iteration and upgrading.

Since last year’s opening of A-share IPO subscriptions to bank wealth management subsidiaries, institutions like Ningbo Bank Wealth, Xingye Bank Wealth, and Everbright Wealth have begun experimenting with A-share “subscribing.” Meanwhile, ICBC Wealth, China Post Wealth, and CMB Wealth have focused on the Hong Kong “subscribing” market.

Experts believe that the differentiation in the layout of A-share and Hong Kong “subscribing” among bank wealth management subsidiaries reflects significant differences in resource endowment, risk appetite, and strategic positioning.

Dong Danuo, a researcher at PuYi Standard, told Securities Daily that, from the perspective of resource endowment and capability boundaries, top-tier bank wealth management subsidiaries with strong capital and broad research coverage are more suitable for large-scale cornerstone investments in Hong Kong stocks that require high research demands; smaller institutions, limited by capital and research strength, tend to prefer lower-threshold, familiar A-share offline “subscribing.”

“From the perspective of risk appetite and return goals, A-share ‘subscribing’ offers stable returns, fitting risk-averse institutions pursuing absolute returns; while Hong Kong ‘subscribing’ has higher potential returns but also risks of volatility and break-evens, more suitable for risk-tolerant institutions seeking relative gains. Additionally, institutions focusing on high-net-worth clients tend to target scarce Hong Kong stocks to meet diversified client needs; those focusing on retail wealth management emphasize the stability of A-share ‘subscribing,’ aligning with ordinary investors’ risk preferences, reflecting different strategic positions and customer demands,” Dong Danuo added.

Zeng Gang believes that institutions focusing on A-share “subscribing” mainly rely on domestic research networks, offline channels, and existing A-share holdings, better serving clients seeking steady and controllable returns. Conversely, institutions inclined toward Hong Kong “subscribing” usually possess stronger cross-border operations, foreign exchange management, and overseas research capabilities, aiming for higher returns by targeting high-growth tech and innovation stocks.

“Moreover, the current listing of high-quality companies in the Hong Kong hard tech and innovation sectors provides abundant investment targets for bank wealth management subsidiaries. Policy improvements have made participation channels smoother, and the cornerstone or anchor investor model can lock in stable allotments, aligning with conservative investment preferences,” said Dong Danuo.

Multiple Challenges

Overall, only some bank wealth management subsidiaries are active in the A-share and Hong Kong IPO “subscribing” markets, mainly concentrated among leading institutions. Experts believe that there are still institutional and qualification barriers, insufficient research and pricing capabilities, and risks related to risk control and compliance.

“Offline A-share ‘subscribing’ has clear minimum holdings requirements, which most bank wealth management subsidiaries with fixed income-focused asset structures cannot meet for large-scale participation; Hong Kong cornerstone investments require large capital and cross-border qualification reviews, demanding high cross-border investment capabilities,” Dong Danuo explained. “Valuation of ‘hard tech’ and unprofitable innovative stocks is difficult, and traditional fixed income research systems are hard to adapt, leading to potential pricing deviations. Hong Kong’s internationalization and influence from global capital flows and exchange rate fluctuations further increase the difficulty of analysis. Additionally, cross-market investments require comprehensive risk control over market, liquidity, and compliance risks; balancing product liquidity and returns under new stock lock-in rules also tests asset allocation and product design capabilities.”

“Bank wealth management subsidiaries can optimize strategies accordingly,” Zeng Gang suggested. “In the A-share market, strengthen pricing research and compliance management, optimize core holdings, and improve quotation accuracy; in the Hong Kong market, build professional cross-border research teams, use foreign exchange tools to hedge currency risks, and reasonably control lock-in periods and investment concentration. Also, improve cross-market risk control systems, match target assets with product risk levels, and adopt an ‘A+H’ coordinated layout to diversify risks while steadily increasing ‘subscribing’ returns and investment stability.”