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BoCom to net US$3.3b from A-share issuance

(Shanghai Daily)
Updated: 2007-04-24 13:42

Bank of Communications hopes to net up to 25.2 billion yuan (US$3.3 billion) selling yuan-backedA-sharesinShanghai.

The bank, which is selling 3.19 billionA sharesin Shanghai, is offering a price range of 7.0 yuan to 7.9 yuan per share, the fifth biggest lender in China said in a statement to theShanghai Stock Exchangelate yesterday.

The offered price is less than the expected range of 8.5 yuan to 9.0 yuan, said She Minhua, a China Securities Co analyst.

She expected the shares to top 12 yuan on the first trading day, which is expected on May 15.

Zhang Qi, a Haitong Securities Co analyst, said it's safe to buy shares if they are priced at less than 10 yuan apiece.

The shares account for 6.51 percent of BoCom's total stock of 48.99 billion.

"BoCom is the only big state-owned bank which has no obstacles in developing further and the only one among the big banks that is gaining more market share," said Qiu Zhicheng, a Haitong Securities Co analyst. "Its profit growth is set to speed up."

Qiu expects the bank to post a 45.5 percent profit growth this year and sees the pace slowing to 35.2 percent in 2008.

The bank, 19.99 percent held by HSBC, is leveraging its strategic partner's expertise in internal risk control, product innovation andretailbusiness marketing.

BoCom, which went public inHong Kongin June 2005, joins China Citic Bank Co in taking advantage of a rally in the Chinese stock market to sell shares and a lending boom which helped fuel the nation's 10.7 percent economic growth last year.

China Citic Bank Corp sold US$5.4 billion of shares in the world's biggest offering this year with a simultaneous listing in Shanghai and Hong Kong at the weekend.

TheFujianProvince-based lender said yesterday on the local bourse's Website that it priced its Class A shares at 5.80 yuan and its ClassH sharesat HK$5.86 a share. Both of those prices work out to 75 US cents.

The midsize Chinese lender raised US$3.67 billion from its Class H-share IPO after pricing 4.885 billion shares at the top of the indicative range. It also raised US$1.73 billion from its Class A-share sale after pricing 2.3 billion shares at the top of the indicative range.

Shanghai-based BoCom has 2,600 branches nationwide and has a relatively young and well educated work force. About 78 percent of BoCom's employees are aged below 40 years old.