Indonesia’s Merdeka Gold said to hire banks for Hong Kong listing

Indonesian miner PT Merdeka Gold Resources has hired investment banks to work on its listing in Hong Kong, according to people familiar with the matter, as gold prices are scaling fresh heights.

The company, a unit of PT Merdeka Copper Gold that went public in Jakarta in 2025, is working with Citic Securities Co., Morgan Stanley and UBS Group AG on the share sale, the people said, asking not to be identified to discuss a private matter.

Deliberations are ongoing, and the size and timing of the deal are still under discussion. Merdeka Gold, UBS and Citic declined to comment. Morgan Stanley didn’t reply to a request for comment. IFR earlier reported on the listing plan.

The transaction, if it were to be completed, would be a rare deal featuring a non-Chinese company debuting in the Asian financial hub. Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd. in 2023 struck a cooperation agreement with the Indonesia Stock Exchange to explore cross-border listings in both markets.

Merdeka Gold operates a gold mine in Indonesia’s Sulawesi, with ore reserves of 190 million tons containing about 4.8 million ounces of gold, according to the company. It had a loss of $22.3 million for the first nine months of 2025. The company’s shares have more than doubled since their September debut, giving Merdeka Gold a market capitalization of $5.7 billion.

In 2025, gold had its strongest year since 1979 as investors sought safe havens and moved away from the dollar, encouraging miners to take opportunities to raise capital and fund future growth. Global listings, share placements and block trades in the gold-mining sector raised a record $15 billion in 2025, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

In Hong Kong, China’s Zijin Gold International Co. raised $3.7 billion from its initial public offering last year.

(By Dave Sebastian and Julia Fioretti)