An initial public offering from Alibaba's Ant Group by year-end would give equity capital markets in Hong Kong a timely boost after a new security law cast in doubt the city's future as a global financial centre, analysts said on Thursday.
A listing by Ant Group, the fintech arm of the Chinese e-commerce giant, would add diversity and reinforce Hong Kong's reputation as a global financial centre, said Hao Hong, head of research at Bocom International. The comments followed a Reuters report on Wednesday that cited two sources with direct knowledge as saying that Ant planned a Hong Kong float as soon as this year, and targeted a valuation of more than US$200 billion.The sources said Ant was considering listing 5per cent to 10per cent of its stock, in what would be the world's largest IPO this year, based on the estimated valuation.Alibaba's US$12.