Leadership Transition at HKEX: Nicolas Aguzin to Depart in 2024, Bonnie Chan to Take Over

(Nicolas Aguzin, Chief Executive of HKEX)

The Board of Directors (the "Board") of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited ("HKEX") announced last Friday (December 15) that Nicolas Aguzin, Chief Executive of HKEX, has informed the Board that he will not seek reappointment at the end of his current contract in May 2024. Ms Bonnie Y Chan has been appointed to succeed Mr Aguzin as the next Chief Executive of HKEX, effective May 24, 2024, for a term of three years until May 23, 2027.

During his tenure over the last two and a half years against a particularly challenging macro backdrop, shaped by Covid and weak global markets, Mr Aguzin has been in charge of various important strategic initiatives since May 2021, promoting HKEX on a global scale, establishing new offices in New York and London, and contributing to the development and improvement of a series of products and platforms, including the growth in the exchange's derivatives and ETF markets.

Laura M Cha, Chairman of HKEX, commented: "On behalf of the HKEX Board, I would like to thank Nicolas for leading HKEX during a very challenging period. He has played a major role in driving the promotion of Hong Kong's financial markets internationally during this time, re-starting dialogue and connectivity in a post-Covid world and ensuring that HKEX was very much seen as open-for-business. We fully respect his decision to pursue new opportunities and we wish him all the very best for the future. We look forward to working with him over the coming months to ensure a smooth transition."

Nicolas Aguzin, Chief Executive of HKEX, said: "Leading HKEX has been the privilege of a lifetime, and I owe deep gratitude to all the hardworking colleagues, partners and stakeholders who have supported me along the way. Purpose is very important to me and when I started at HKEX, we set about delivering on ours, 'to connect, promote and progress our markets and the communities they support for the benefit of all'. I believe we have succeeded in this, building strong purpose-led foundations that will continue helping the financial sector to be a critical enabler of the real economy for years to come. The Group's unique strength is both its China and global connectivity and during my tenure we have been steadfast in ensuring that Hong Kong's markets have remained relevant, connected and competitive, successfully supporting our customers and stakeholders around the world.

"I am particularly proud of the wide range of strategic initiatives and projects that the team has delivered in the last few years, despite the challenging and turbulent backdrop. Over the next few months, I will work closely with my team to ensure a smooth and seamless transition of leadership at the Group."

The appointment of Ms Bonnie Y Chan as the Chief Executive of HKEX has been approved by the Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). She will also become an ex-officio member of the Board, effective May 24, 2024.

Ms Chan has more than three decades of experiences in legal and financial services. In January 2020, she joined HKEX as the Head of Listing and currently holds the position of Co-Chief Operating Officer. Before her time at HKEX, Chan worked as a partner at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP from 2010 to 2019, where she managed a wide portfolio of clients in Hong Kong and across Asia. From 2007 to 2010, she served as the Head of IPO Transactions for the Listing Division at HKEX. Ms. Chan previously held positions as a board member of the Inland Revenue of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Financial Services Development Council. She was also an ex-officio member of the Standing Committee on Company Law Reform from 2020 to 2022.

Chan obtained a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Hong Kong and a Master of Laws from Harvard Law School.

In addition, the Board also announced the appointment of Wilfred Yiu as Deputy Chief Executive, effective May 24, 2024, approved by the SFC. He will also continue to act as the Co-Chief Operating Officer of HKEX. Furthermore, Mr Yiu will continue to hold positions as the Chief Executive of both The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited and Hong Kong Futures Exchange Limited, which are direct wholly owned subsidiaries of HKEX.