HKMC's HK$12 billion inaugural public digital bond issuance
The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
The Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation Limited (HKMC) today (June 11) announced the successful pricing of its inaugural digital bonds totalling approximately HK$12 billion equivalent (Issuance) under its US$30 billion Medium Term Note Programme. Following a series of effective pre-marketing exercises and investor roadshows, the bonds were successfully book-built and priced in Hong Kong on June 10, 2026.
This landmark transaction marks the largest-ever digital bond issuance globally to date, underscoring the deep market liquidity and accelerating adoption by institutional investors. With the Issuance, the HKMC also becomes the first public sector entity in Hong Kong to issue digital bonds. In addition, the 5-year Hong Kong dollar (HKD) tranche represents the longest tenor ever for an HKD-denominated digital bond, setting a new benchmark in the HKD bond market.
The triple-tranche digital bond issuance comprises HK$6 billion 2-year, HK$2.5 billion 5-year and CNH 3 billon 3-year digital bonds. Building on the successful digital bond issuance mechanism adopted by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR Government), the Issuance was well received by a diverse group of high-quality institutional investors. These included local, Southbound Bond Connect and international institutional investors, spanning multilateral development bank, central bank, banks, private banks, insurance and asset management companies. The Issuance attracted a combined peak orderbook of around HK$24 billion equivalent from more than 100 accounts.
The digital bonds are digitally created on a distributed ledger technology platform operated by the Central Moneymarkets Unit (CMU), which also serves as the clearing and settlement system for the digital bonds.
The Issuance marks a significant milestone on the HKMC's digital finance journey. Key features include issuing the bonds in a digitally native format for greater operational efficiency, providing investors the option to access via the existing CMU infrastructure and linkage to Euroclear and Clearstream, and successfully shortening the settlement cycle from five business days to three business days.
Deputy Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and Executive Director of the HKMC Mr Howard Lee said, "By launching tokenised fixed income products and driving market innovation, the HKMC demonstrates its unwavering support for the HKSAR Government's strategic roadmap to cement Hong Kong's position as a global fixed income and currency hub. This landmark digital bond issuance helps deepen Hong Kong's digital asset ecosystem and accelerate the adoption of tokenisation technology in the fixed income market, inspiring a wider range of issuers, investors, intermediaries and other industry stakeholders to embrace this innovative financial instrument."
Executive Director and the Chief Executive Officer of the HKMC, Mr Colin Pou, said, "Through our effective pre-marketing exercises and roadshows to the investing community, the inaugural digital bonds issued by the HKMC were priced amidst strong market reception. This milestone highlights the growing participation from arranging banks and first-time digital bond investors. It reinforces Hong Kong's distinctive role in bridging traditional finance with the digital asset era. Moving forward, the HKMC will continue to leverage its strengths to further develop the local bond market."
The HKMC highly appreciates the professional advice and tremendous support from the Joint Global Coordinators, Joint Bookrunners, and Joint Lead Managers which comprised a total of 16 local and international financial institutions, in making a success of the Issuance. The full list of participating financial institutions is set out at the Annex.
Source: AI-found images
DH convenes 14th Meeting of International Advisory Board on Hong Kong Chinese Materia Medica Standards
The Department of Health (DH) today (July 14) convened the 14th Meeting of the International Advisory Board (IAB) on Hong Kong Chinese Materia Medica Standards (HKCMMS) to review the reference standards for 16 types of Chinese Materia Medica (CMM) commonly used in Hong Kong, and to discuss the future development of the HKCMMS. Over 60 experts from the Chinese Mainland, overseas and Hong Kong attended the meeting.
Since 2002, the DH has been implementing the HKCMMS project in phases to develop standards for commonly used CMM in Hong Kong to ensure their safety and quality.
In his opening remarks, the Director of Health and the Chairperson of the IAB, Dr Ronald Lam, said, "One of the key initiatives of the Government Chinese Medicines Testing Institute (GCMTI) under the DH is the implementation of the HKCMMS. With the publication of the Volume 12 of the HKCMMS, standards for 357 types of CMM have been established so far. They have become widely recognised international reference standards for Chinese medicine testing and certification, thereby promoting the high-quality scientific development of Chinese medicine. In addition, the work of GCMTI is closely aligned with national priorities. The National 15th Five-Year Plan made it clear that we need to 'advance the inheritance and innovation of Chinese medicine' and 'promote the integration of Chinese and Western medicine'. It also calls for us to 'strengthen the conservation and utilisation of Chinese medicine resources', 'improve the quality of Chinese medicine, and build up and strengthen the Chinese medicine industry'. These are exactly the goals that the HKCMMS Project is helping to achieve - by setting rigorous quality standards for CMM and conducting applied research and development on testing methods that underpin the entire industry, establishing the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as a bridgehead for the global expansion of Chinese Medicine."
Dr Lam emphasised that the success of the HKCMMS project depends on the active collaboration of stakeholders across different sectors. He expressed his sincere appreciation to the four research partners attending the meeting, commending their dedicated contributions to advancing the project's research efforts. They were the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the China Medical University. He also thanked the Government Laboratory for conducting inter-laboratory verification studies. Dr Lam emphasised that these collaborations are crucial for establishing a rigorous and solid scientific foundation for the HKCMMS and gaining international credibility. The DH is also deeply grateful to the National Medical Products Administration, the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the Chinese Pharmacopoeia Commission for their continuous valuable advice and support in developing the HKCMMS. To align with the National 15th Five-Year Plan to advance the inheritance, innovation and high-quality development of Chinese medicine, expand and promote Chinese medicine culture, the DH will continue to steadfastly promote the development of Chinese medicine and better integrate into and serve the overall national development.
The two-day meeting brought together experts from the Chinese Mainland, Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany, Japan, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as representatives from research institutions, the DH and the Government Laboratory of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The 16 types of CMM commonly used in Hong Kong that were discussed at the meeting included Bambusae Caulis in Taenias, Pyrolae Herba, Natrii Sulfas, Dichroae Radix, Dioscoreae Hypoglaucae Rhizoma, Cynanchi Atrati Radix et Rhizoma, Jasmini Flos, Tinosporae Caulis, Inulae Flos, Haematitum, Lasiosphaera seu Calvatia, Vespae Nidus, Dioscoreae Rhizoma, Aconiti Kusnezoffii Folium, Meliae Cortex and Tripterygii Wilfordii Radix.
Previous editions of the HKCMMS can be accessed at the website of the Chinese Medicine Regulatory Office of the DH.
DH convenes 14th Meeting of International Advisory Board on Hong Kong Chinese Materia Medica Standards Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
DH convenes 14th Meeting of International Advisory Board on Hong Kong Chinese Materia Medica Standards Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
DH convenes 14th Meeting of International Advisory Board on Hong Kong Chinese Materia Medica Standards Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
