HKSI Paper 5 study guide
HKSI Paper 5 · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
HKSI Licensing Examination Paper 5, Regulation of Corporate Finance, is one of the papers in the Hong Kong Securities and Investment Institute's licensing examination series. It is designed for practitioners who advise on or execute corporate finance transactions in Hong Kong: sponsor and financial adviser staff, investment bankers, compliance officers, lawyers and others whose roles touch listing, takeovers or capital raisings. The HKSI Paper 5 study guide has 8 sections and about 5,565 words.
01Hong Kong Regulatory Framework and the Securities and Futures Ordinance
Paper 5 assumes you can place any corporate finance issue inside the right statutory box. This domain tests who regulates what, which body hears which appeal, and whether a given rule is statute, subsidiary legislation or a contract-based rulebook.
517 words, about 3 min02SFC Licensing
Licensing questions in Paper 5 are rarely about licensing for its own sake; they test whether you know which licence a corporate finance activity requires and what the people doing it must satisfy. Type 1 dealing in securities; Type 2 dealing in futures contracts; Type 3 leveraged foreign exchange trading; Type 4 advising on securities; Type 5 advising on futures contracts; Type 6 advising on corporate finance; Type 7 providing automated trading services; Type 8 securities margin financing; Type 9 asset management; Type 10 credit rating services; Type 11 over-the-counter derivative dealing; Type 12 depositary services for relevant collective investment schemes.
508 words, about 3 min03Corporate Finance Adviser and Sponsor Regimes
The sponsor regime is one of the most heavily enforced areas of Hong Kong corporate finance. Expect questions on timing, independence, and the difference between a sponsor, a compliance adviser and an ordinary Type 6 adviser.
499 words, about 2 min04Listing Rules
This domain tests whether you can locate the right chapter and apply the numerical eligibility tests without slipping on denominators or continuity periods. Main Board Rules and GEM Rules are separate sets.
472 words, about 2 min05The Listing Committee and the Exchange's Role
Paper 5 tests the institutional plumbing: who within the Exchange makes listing decisions, how those decisions are reviewed, and where the SFC's statutory overlay bites. The Listing Division is the executive arm: it vets applications, issues comment letters, and prepares papers for the Listing Committee.
441 words, about 2 min06Initial Public Offerings: Eligibility, Application, Vetting and Listing
This domain tests the IPO timeline and the documents produced at each stage. Marks are lost by mixing up the Application Proof, the PHIP and the prospectus, and by missing the clawback mechanics.
437 words, about 2 min07Post-listing Obligations
Once listed, an issuer owes continuous obligations. This domain tests deadlines, the Model Code blackout and the statutory disclosure duty, which operate alongside each other.
400 words, about 2 min08Connected Transactions and Notifiable Transactions
Chapters 14 and 14A are examined together but apply differently. The commonest error is applying Chapter 14 percentage ratio thresholds to a transaction that is also a connected transaction.
2,291 words, about 11 min