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The latest FinanceAsia e-magazine is now available online for subscribers.
This month, I’ve felt as if we are a fashion magazine, given the companies we have been covering — from Prada to Samsonite, which both beg references back to L’Occitane, we have been focusing on high-end, consumer goods. They certainly sell here in the brand-name conscious epicentre of shopping, but whether or not retail investors will buy into them in the long-haul (particularly if Hong Kong’s God of stockpickers, Li Ka-shing, doesn’t embrace them) remains to be seen.
In keeping with this specialist theme, our cover story is about the rise of boutique investment firms. They were criticised as a post-financial crisis lifeline for laid off or underutilised bankers in 2009, but now they are carving out niches and building networks that provide customers with bespoke and valuable services.
Given that Prada and Samsonite are two of the biggest equity offerings this year, it seemed sensible to do an in-depth report on the equities capital market. In it we look at why international companies are choosing to list in Hong Kong, we also focus on the value of equities in Asia overall, and then hone in on two key markets: India and China, The latter has been under pressure thanks to a few companies that have been heavily shorted.
Finally, this issue features our Country Awards of Achievement, which is our highest-honour for local banks across the region.
See the full contents page here.
