Chairman of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, Mr. Huang Tianyou: Collaboration from all parties to drive Hong Kong stocks from "trading" to "quality".

On May 27, Dr. Carlson Wong, Chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong, delivered a keynote speech at the 2026 Investor Day co-organized by the Hong Kong Institute of Directors and the Hong Kong Investor Relations Association. Dr. Wong stated that Hong Kong, as an international financial center, excels in terms of its institutions, connectivity, and professional investor base. However, in order to move from "having transactions" to "having a quality market," it cannot rely solely on any one party, but must rely on issuers, investors, industry associations, and regulators working together. Dr. Wong pointed out that in 2025, Hong Kong had approximately 2,700 listed companies, with more than 80% of them having a market value of less than HK$10 billion, but their combined daily trading volume accounting for less than 10%. On the other hand, the top 300 companies by market value represent close to 90% of the trading volume. In this structure, many challenges faced by small and medium-sized listed companies may not be that they have "no value," but that the market may not see their value. This is where investor relations play a role. He believed that the four core responsibilities of investor relations professionals are: clear articulation of corporate strategy, gathering market information and investor feedback, cultivating and maintaining target investor groups, and warning management of market risks and signals. Dr. Wong stressed that high-level investor relations professionals should not only "tell a good story" for the company, but also "tell the true story clearly": transforming strategy, business models, capital expenditure, risk management, and governance quality into language that investors can understand, analyze, and compare, consistently presenting them to the market. Therefore, investor relations should be seen as a core strategic function of the company, rather than just a PR or compliance function. Dr. Wong had three expectations for listed companies: first, to prioritize enhancing shareholder value and develop clear and sustainable long-term development strategies, not to be led by short-term stock prices; second, for the board of directors to take the lead in valuing investor relations: the chairman, CEO, and independent non-executive directors should more systematically understand how the market evaluates the company's value and seek to participate in investor meetings; third, to take a more proactive and consistent approach in information disclosure, risk communication, and investor cultivation, allowing the market to understand the company's direction and challenges earlier and more comprehensively. For investors, by engaging in constructive interactions with listed companies, promoting higher levels of disclosure and governance, driving the long-term healthy development of listed companies, enabling more effective capital allocation, and ultimately enhancing the overall quality of the market.