Bonnie Y CHAN, Chief Executive Officer said:

HKEX demonstrated its strength and resilience in the first quarter of the year. Despite a fragile global backdrop, the Group’s derivatives and commodities business performed strongly – the former achieving record quarterly volumes. Whilst the cash market reflected broader macro sentiment and remained soft, there was a notable uptick in Headline ADT in March and April, indicating growing investor confidence.

The Connect programmes, including Northbound Stock Connect and Bond Connect, saw significant growth in trading volumes, with Bond Connect reaching a fresh record for the quarter. Recent initiatives announced by the China Securities Regulatory Commission, such as the expansion of eligible ETFs and the inclusion of Real Estate Investment Trusts in Stock Connect, the addition of RMB-denominated stocks in Southbound Stock Connect, as well as supporting leading Mainland companies to list in Hong Kong, will further elevate the attractiveness of Hong Kong’s capital markets.

Looking ahead, despite the prevailing backdrop, we are optimistic about HKEX’s ability to capitalise on the long-term growth of China, the considerable opportunities to connect with the fast growing capital hubs of Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and the continuing exciting developments in technology in our industry and beyond.

Strategic Highlights

▪ Appointment of new Chief Executive Officer, Ms Bonnie Y Chan, with effect from 1 March 2024

▪ Record quarterly high for ADV of derivatives contracts traded

▪ Record quarterly high for ADT of Northbound Bond Connect

▪ Record quarterly highs for OTC total clearing volume and clearing volume under Swap Connect

▪ Introduction of Self-Match Prevention service in the Securities Market ▪ IPO pipeline remained healthy with 85 active applications as at 31 March 2024

▪ First batch of Covered Call ETFs launched

▪ Announcement of new LME organisational design to enhance transparency, accountability, operational resilience and effectiveness \

▪ Average trading and clearing fee increment of 13 per cent, effective 1 January 2024, implemented by the LME and LME Clear

▪ New Closing Price methodology for five major contracts implemented by the LME, bringing greater determinism, transparency and standardisation

▪ List of funded projects under the HKEX Impact Funding Scheme 2023 announced by HKEX Foundation

Financial Highlights

▪ Q1 2024 revenue and other income of $5,201 million was 6 per cent lower than Q1 2023 (a quarter which benefitted from the strong recovery of economic activity post-COVID), and was 7 per cent higher than Q4 2023:

– Core business revenue was down 7 per cent against Q1 2023, reflecting lower trading and clearing fees from lower Headline ADT, lower net investment income from Margin Funds and Clearing House Funds, and lower listing fees. The decrease was partly offset by higher LME trading and clearing fees driven by both volume and fee increases.

– Net investment income from Corporate Funds was $535 million (Q1 2023: $549 million), due to lower net fair value gains on the externally-managed investment funds (External Portfolio) (Q1 2024: $169 million; Q1 2023: $195 million).

▪ Operating expenses were 8 per cent higher than Q1 2023 (7 per cent lower than Q4 2023), attributable to higher staff costs, partly offset by lower professional fees and lower charitable donations made by HKEX Foundation.

▪ EBITDA margin1 was 72 per cent, 4 percentage points lower than Q1 2023 (4 percentage points higher than Q4 2023).

▪ Profit attributable to shareholders was $2,970 million, 13 per cent lower than Q1 2023 (14 per cent higher than Q4 2023).

The full results can be read here

Source: HKEX