HKEX, ASX, TSX and NASDAQ compared: requirements, costs and timelines

Four exchanges publish four different tests for a new equity listing. We set them side by side: the financial eligibility standards, the minimum market capitalisation at listing, and the initial and annual fees. Each figure is quoted as the exchange prints it: HKEX writes in Hong Kong dollars¹, while the ASX, TSX and Nasdaq schedules each print a plain dollar sign for their own currency, so those three should not be read as one number.

HKEX Main Board: three tests, one capitalisation floor

A Main Board applicant must satisfy one of three tests under rule 8.05¹. The profit test needs a trading record of not less than three financial years, with profit attributable to shareholders of not less than HK$35,000,000 in the most recent year and not less than HK$45,000,000 in aggregate for the two preceding years, excluding income or loss from activities outside the ordinary and usual course of business¹. It also needs management continuity for at least the three preceding financial years and ownership continuity and control for at least the most recent audited financial year¹.

The alternatives trade profit for scale. The market capitalisation/revenue/cash flow test needs a market capitalisation of at least HK$2,000,000,000 at listing, revenue of at least HK$500,000,000 in the most recent audited year, and positive operating cash flow of at least HK$100,000,000 in aggregate over the three preceding years¹. The market capitalisation/revenue test drops the cash flow condition and lifts the floor to HK$4,000,000,000 with the same revenue requirement¹.

Whichever test applies, rule 8.09 requires an expected market capitalisation at listing of at least HK$500,000,000 on all issued shares, with at least HK$125,000,000 of it held by the public¹.

ASX: a profit test or an assets test

Under the profit test the entity must be a going concern, its main business activity at admission must match the last three full financial years, and it must give ASX audited accounts for those years³. Aggregated profit from continuing operations over the last three full financial years must be at least $1 million, and consolidated profit from continuing operations for the 12 months to a date no more than two months before the application must exceed $500,000³.

The assets test applies to an entity that is not an investment entity. At admission it needs either net tangible assets of at least $4 million after deducting the costs of fund raising, or a market capitalisation of at least $15 million³. Working capital, as shown in a reviewed pro forma statement of financial position, must be at least $1.5 million³.

TSX: the Original Listing Requirements of 6 November 2025

The Company Manual amendments took effect on 6 November 2025, and Section 309 gives a Diversified company three standards⁵. Income & Revenue-Producing needs either annual audited pre-tax net income from continuing operations of $750,000 in the fiscal year immediately preceding the listing application, or annual audited revenue of $10,000,000 in that year, plus a market capitalisation of at least $100,000,000⁵.

Pre Income-Producing needs either an audited income statement showing at least one year of operating expenses, backed by a 24-month run rate, or assets under construction with signed imminent leases, backed by a 12-month run rate, plus a market capitalisation of at least $50,000,000⁵. New Enterprise needs management experience, proof of business concept, and either an equity raise of $100,000,000 in the preceding six months with a 12-month run rate and a market capitalisation of at least $100,000,000, or a 24-month run rate and at least $200,000,000⁵. Public distribution requires at least 1,000,000 freely tradeable shares held by at least 300 public holders of one board lot or more⁵.

Nasdaq: three tiers in descending order

Nasdaq operates three tiers, the Global Select Market, the Global Market and the Capital Market, in descending order of stringency⁷. On the Global Select Market a company must meet every criterion under at least one of four financial standards, Earnings, Capitalization with Cash Flow, Capitalization with Revenue, or Assets with Equity, together with the applicable liquidity requirements⁷. Each of those standards requires a bid price of $4⁷.

Initial listing fees

The entry fee scales with the size of the listing on every exchange:

• HKEX: HK$150,000 where the monetary value of the equity securities listed does not exceed HK$100 million, rising by steps to HK$650,000 above HK$5,000 million, paid in advance with the application form². An overseas issuer with its primary listing elsewhere normally pays 25 per cent, subject to a HK$150,000 minimum².
• ASX, from 1 January 2026: $51,581 for securities up to $3 million, then $51,581 plus 0.657785808% on the excess to $10 million, with further bands to $666,351 plus 0.041240851% on the excess above $1,000 million⁴. Foreign exempt listings carry a $1,000,000 maximum, and fees exclude GST⁴.
• TSX, from 1 August 2025: a non-refundable $10,000 application fee, not deducted from the listing fee, then a scale on Listing Capitalization from a $10,000 base plus 0.142% in the band up to $5M to a $140,250 base plus 0.122% at $100M and above, capped at $200,000⁶. International Interlisted Issuers receive a 25% discount⁶.
• Nasdaq: a flat $325,000 on the Global Select and Global Markets, including a $25,000 application fee⁷. The Capital Market charges $50,000 for up to 15 million total shares outstanding and $75,000 above that, each including a $5,000 application fee⁷.

Annual fees

HKEX charges on the nominal value of the listed equity securities, in advance in one instalment: HK$145,000 where the value does not exceed HK$200 million, rising to HK$1,188,000 above HK$5,000 million². ASX's fee from 1 July 2026 starts at $17,185 for quoted securities up to $3 million and is capped at $593,767 above $10,000 million⁴. TSX's annual sustaining fee runs on Market Capitalization from a $12,000 base plus 0.013% up to $100M to an $83,000 base plus 0.007% at $700M and above, capped at $150,000⁶. Nasdaq's all-inclusive annual fee from 1 January 2026 is set by shares outstanding: on the Global Select and Global Markets, $59,500 up to 10 million shares rising to $199,000 over 150 million; on the Capital Market, $56,000 up to 10 million rising to $86,500 over 50 million⁷.

What the tests say about timing

The rules fix how much history each test consumes, not how long an application takes. HKEX's three tests each require a trading record of not less than three financial years¹. ASX's profit test looks at the last three full financial years and at the 12 months to a date no more than two months before the application³. TSX's income and revenue tests look only at the fiscal year immediately preceding the filing⁵. A company with two audited years and a third in progress therefore stands at a different point on each calendar.

The next step

Ask your auditor to restate the last three financial years in the form each test measures: profit attributable to shareholders, excluding items outside the ordinary course, for HKEX¹; aggregated and 12-month profit from continuing operations for ASX³; pre-tax net income from continuing operations and audited revenue for the most recent fiscal year for TSX⁵. Set those columns beside a current valuation and the HK$500,000,000¹, $15 million³ and $50,000,000⁵ capitalisation floors, and the table shows which applications can be filed on this year's accounts.

Next in this stage: Dual and secondary listings: how they work

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