Following its consultation paper on special purpose acquisition vehicles (SPACs) in September 2021, on 17 December 2021, the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the SEHK) announced new rules to create a listing regime for SPACs that will take effect on 1 January 2022. With new Hong Kong rules coming into effect, Hong Kong and Singapore will become the two jurisdictions in Asia that offer SPACs in their capital markets.

SPACs seeking a listing on the SEHK in Hong Kong will be subject, among other rules, to the new rules contained in Chapter 18B of the Main Board Listing Rules. In this article, we set out a brief jurisdictional comparison between Hong Kong and Singapore’s SPAC listing framework.