Bank of Communications (BoCom), China's fifth largest lender, plans to issue
up to 4.5 billion A shares in a domestic listing, a senior official
said.
"The board of directors have approved the A-share issue plan," said
Peng Chun, executive vice-president of BoCom. The bank expects to improve its
shareholding structure and boost its capital through the A-share listing.
If BoCom's A shares are priced similar to the latest market price of its
H shares, the bank could raise as much as 32 billion yuan (US$4.05 billion). But
analysts expect the H shares price to drop.
"The H-share price is at a
high level," said She Minhua, an analyst from CITIC Securities.
The
South China Morning Post reported recently BoCom plans to raise nearly 20
billion yuan (US$2.53 billion) in the Shanghai stock market in the first half of
next year, quoting unnamed sources close to the situation.
The report
also said BoCom hired CITIC Securities, China Galaxy Securities and Haitong
Securities and Goldman Sachs Gao Hua Securities to underwrite its domestic share
sale.
However, Peng from BoCom said there is no timetable for the listing and
the plan still needs approval from shareholders and regulators.
BoCom,
the first Chinese bank listed in Hong Kong, reported on Thursday a strong
performance for the first nine months. Its total assets reached 1.6 trillion
yuan (US$202.5 billion) by the end of September, up 12.63 per cent over the end
of last year.
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