The consultation paper proposes to increase the Main Board Profit Requirement by 150% or 200%.

The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the Exchange) has published a Consultation Paper on the Main Board Profit Requirement (the Consultation Paper) proposing to increase the profit requirement to align with the market capitalisation requirement for Main Board applicants. Since the introduction of the profit requirement in 1994, the Exchange has maintained the profit requirement despite amendment to other requirements such as the increase in market capitalisation requirement from HK$200 million to HK$500 million in 2018. When introduced in 1994, a new applicant was required to have a minimum amount of profit attributable to shareholders of HK$20 million in the most recent financial year and HK$30 million in aggregate in the two preceding financial years (the Profit Requirement). The Exchange's 27 November 2020 proposal is intended to align the Profit Requirement with the revised market capitalisation requirement (which was increased five-fold from HK$100 million in 1994 to HK$500 million in 2018). A more detailed summary of the Consultation Paper is set out below. The consultation period ends on 1 February 2021.