Futu confirmed that it increased its investment in Airstar Bank in September last year, subscribing HK$500 million for newly issued shares in Gravitation Fintech HK, the parent company of Airstar Bank.

Following completion, Futu’s indirect shareholding in Airstar Bank rose to 68.43%, making it the bank’s controlling shareholder.

According to a report by the Hong Kong Economic Journal, the additional capital injection increased Futu’s stake from 44.11% to 68.43%, replacing Xiaomi as controlling shareholder.

Xiaomi, a founding shareholder, saw its indirect interest diluted from 50.3% to 28.41%.

The transaction marks the first change of a founding controlling shareholder since the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) granted eight virtual banking licenses in 2019.

It is also the first instance of a non-bank mainland Chinese brokerage becoming the controlling shareholder of a licensed digital bank in Hong Kong.

Public filings show that Gravitation Fintech, which wholly owns Airstar Bank, issued approximately 2.067 billion new shares in September.

Futu subscribed in full for HK$500 million. Together with the 1.184 billion shares it previously held, Futu now owns about 3.251 billion shares in Gravitation Fintech.

As Xiaomi maintained its 1.35 billion shares, the issuance diluted its stake to 28.41%. AMTD Group saw its interest reduced from 5.59% to 3.16%.

Total issued shares increased to around 4.751 billion, with share capital of HK$2.44 billion.

In a late November report, CMB International stated that Futu will fully consolidate Airstar Bank’s financial results.

Management expects the bank to remain in an investment phase for two to three years, with limited impact on overall profitability.

For the third quarter ended September, Futu reported 28.16 million registered users and 5.61 million accounts. Client assets rose 79% year on year to HK$1.24 trillion.

Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Hong Kong, based on image by Airstar Bank and ilygraphic via Freepik