Financial regulators in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region are teaming up to strengthen the city’s capital markets financial infrastructure and advance the long-term development of the city's fixed income and currencies (FIC) ecosystem.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) on Wednesday announced that Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) will become a strategic shareholder of CMU OmniClear Holdings — which was established by the Exchange Fund managed by the HKMA in October 2025 in order to wholly own CMU OmniClear. CMU OmniClear was set up in 2024 to carry out the operations and business development activities of Hong Kong's central securities depository infrastructure, the Central Moneymarkets Unit (CMU) system, on behalf of the HKMA.

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According to a HKSAR government statement on Wednesday, HKEX will be a strategic shareholder of CMU OmniClear Holdings with a 20-percent stake through the subscription of new shares. Upon completion, the Exchange Fund and the HKEX will hold 80 percent and 20 percent of CMU OmniClear Holdings, respectively.

The HKMA remains the owner and system operator of CMU for the purposes of the Payment Systems and Stored Value Facilities Ordinance. The legal relationships with CMU participants and other system linkages remain with the HKMA.

“This partnership establishes a strong foundation for transforming CMU into a multi-asset class platform that provides investors with one-stop access to equity and debt securities while facilitating efficient two-way investment flows between the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and international markets,” said Eddie Yue Wai-man, chief executive of HKMA and chairperson of CMU OmniClear Holdings.

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Yue said he expects the partnership will unlock synergies and create more new business opportunities, further strengthening Hong Kong's position as a leading international financial centre, global risk management centre and global offshore renminbi business hub.

HKEX Chief Executive Officer Bonnie Chan Yiting added, "Developing our FIC capabilities sits at the core of HKEX's strategic objectives, and this important investment reflects our commitment to building a diversified and vibrant multi-asset class product network, supporting the long-term resilience of our markets.”

Through the partnership, the HKMA and the HKEX will harness their combined resources, technology, talent, and market expertise to facilitate the development of Hong Kong's post-trade securities infrastructure into a major central securities depository (CSD) in the region. This collaboration will also support the continued commercialisation of CMU and the pursuit of business development initiatives in areas such as expansion of its investor CSD services, asset classes coverage and collateral management services, with the goal of enhancing cross-asset class efficiency in Hong Kong.