Equity House: Morgan Stanley
Undisputed champion
As Asia’s equity capital markets rebounded, one bank showed an unrivalled ability to drive marquee transactions and tailor-make solutions for its clients. For leading the deals that defined the year, Morgan Stanley is IFR Asia’s Equity House of the Year.
Morgan Stanley led the way in Asia’s equity capital markets in 2025, securing key roles on the biggest capital raisings of the year and showing its strength across a mix of markets and products.
Equity and equity-linked fundraising in Asia Pacific excluding Japan stood at US$217.5bn under the review period, according to LSEG data. Morgan Stanley took top spot with a market share of 9.6% and US$20.9bn of volume, around US$5.9bn more than the bank in second place.
The US bank worked on eight of the year’s 10 largest deals, but what was more impressive was its ability to secure sole mandates or lead roles for jumbo transactions.
“Despite the fierce competition, we were able to capture all that business sole. This speaks volumes about the strength of our franchise,” said Cathy Zhang, head of Asia Pacific equity capital markets.
A HK$26.8bn (US$3.4bn) block in AIA Group was a signature transaction. Leveraging its global platform and its willingness to commit capital for the right clients, Morgan Stanley single-handedly helped sovereign wealth fund Kuwait Investment Authority sell its entire stake in the Hong Kong-headquartered insurer.
Morgan Stanley was also a sole bookrunner for Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China’s HK$11.8bn CB, a promotion from being a joint bookrunner for the insurer’s CB in 2024.
Alibaba Group Holding’s US$3.2bn convertible bond, the world’s largest this year, was another example. Morgan Stanley was the only book coordinator for the deal, leading a nine-bank syndicate.
The bank was also a lead-left sponsor for Zijin Gold International’s HK$28.8bn Hong Kong IPO, the city’s largest this year.
China ECM came back stronger in 2025 after a dismal 2024, as the country’s flourishing artificial intelligence and biotech sectors tempted international investors to return to the market after a lengthy absence.
China accounted for 52% of the deal volume in the region, with Morgan Stanley ranked second in the league table for the country.
It helped Chinese internet company Baidu monetise part of its stake in online travel firm Trip.com through a US$2bn exchangeable bond. The bank was also a joint global coordinator on Shenzhen-listed electric vehicle battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology’s HK$41bn Hong Kong listing, the world’s largest during the awards period.
Morgan Stanley dominated the healthcare sector, arranging around US$8bn of China biotech equity transactions with close to 80% market share. As sole global coordinator, it raised HK$7.7bn for Chinese contract medical researcher WuXi AppTec, a longstanding client for the bank. It was also a joint sponsor on Shanghai-listed drugmaker Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals’ HK$11.4bn Hong Kong listing.
“What we offer clients is not only a solution for them to bring one deal to the market, we care about how we recycle the capital over time,” said Dan Chapman, head of Asia Pacific equity and debt capital markets syndicate.
The bank led South Korean information technology service provider LG CNS’s W1.2trn (US$819m) IPO, the country’s largest for three years. It then helped shareholder Macquarie Korea Asset Management raise a combined W794bn from two selldowns over the year.
Morgan Stanley was one of the top global banks for Indian deals, recording US$4.7bn of league table volume.
It worked on the largest and second-largest Indian IPOs of the year – the Rs125bn (US$1.4bn) float of Indian nonbank lender HDB Financial Services and the highly successful Rs116bn offering of LG Electronics India, a deal that showcased the bank’s expertise on cross-border transactions.
Morgan Stanley also had a strong presence in India’s follow-on market, and worked on State Bank of India’s Rs250bn share sale, the country’s largest-ever qualified institutional placement.
Beyond China and India, Morgan Stanley arranged a A$4bn (US$2.6bn) placement for industrial property giant Goodman Group, the largest Australian ECM transaction in more than three years. It also led Singapore ride-hailing company Grab Holdings’ US$1.5bn upsized convertible bond.
(Additional reporting by S Anuradha)
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