As part of its listing reforms, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) will allow qualified companies, including start-ups, to make confidential filings during the initial public offering (IPO) application process. The move will enhance efficiency and make the IPO market more competitive globally.The overhaul can leverage synergies between the mainland and Hong Kong markets. That will help support long-term growth and market health. Much original work in hi-tech fields involves proprietary services, confidential business models and intellectual property. Confidential filings make sense, at least during the initial application stage. This means candidates can disclose required company details only after their applications are approved. The changes are expected to be announced by the end of this month.This will not affect listing standards in terms of public disclosure. Still, transparency and timely disclosure are important to maintaining financial integrity and quality.Since October 2013, all listing candidates have been required to publish relevant company documents such as corporate history, business models and financial information once they submit an application.The rationale is to provide the most relevant information to the investing public and research analysts early on in the listing process, but some start-ups and their investors have complained that their information was being used by competitors to gain an advantage. To bypass the requirement, some ended up going public in markets such as the United States, Britain and Singapore.Hong Kong is one of the few stock markets that require such public disclosure at application, but it needs to keep up with the times and stay competitive to attract promising start-ups to list in the city.