HONG KONG, Sept 17 (Askume) – Saudi Arabia has approved the listing of its first stock-tracking exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Hong Kong on Tuesday, the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) said, marking the first time the product has been listed in the city.
This comes as Beijing and Hong Kong work to deepen ties with Arab countries in response to growing tensions with the West.
Saudi Arabia’s CMA said in a statement that it has approved the request of local asset management company Albilad Investment Co. to sell units of the “Albilad CSOP MSCI Hong Kong China Equity ETF” on the Saudi Arabian Stock Exchange (Tadawul). However, the regulator did not disclose the timetable for the release of the funds.
The ETF was launched in partnership with Hong Kong-based CSOP Asset Management and focuses on Hong Kong-listed companies, including Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong.
In November last year, Hong Kong launched Asia’s first ETF tracking Saudi Arabian shares – the CSOP Saudi Arabia ETF (2830.HK) , and is actively seeking cross-listing opportunities in the two capital markets.
The size of Hong Kong-listed ETFs has grown to nearly HK$10 billion (US$1.28 billion).
In June, Ms Leung Fung-yee, chief executive of Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), visited Saudi Arabia to meet officials and discuss the possibility of listing ETFs on each other’s exchanges.
China also approved the first two ETFs listed on the mainland in June , tracking the Hong Kong CSOP Saudi Arabia ETF, seeking to further strengthen financial industry cooperation between the two regions and provide Chinese investors with opportunities to invest in Middle Eastern companies.
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