Hong Kong Regulatory Scrutiny Puts Share Sale Boom at Risk

Intensifying regulatory scrutiny is rattling Hong Kong’s financial industry and raising the prospects of a slowdown in booming share sales in Asia’s premier fundraising hub.

In the latest blow to the industry, Beijing is restricting certain types of Chinese companies incorporated overseas from seeking listings in Hong Kong, according to people familiar with the matter. The move threatening to upend a decades-old playbook that has fueled billions of dollars in share sales is just the latest sign that the hot market for initial public offerings is attracting a tougher stance by authorities.