| China's banking system reform continues |
BEIJING, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) is expected to announce later this week its decision on the application of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), for an initial public offering (IPO) on both Shanghai Stock Exchange and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in October.
It is expected that the IPO of ICBC, the country's largest commercial bank, will hit a record high.
On July 5, the Bank of China (BOC), one of the big four state-owned banks, raised a record 20 billion yuan ((2.5 billion U.S. dollars) in its IPO.
Last Saturday, the IPO of China Merchants Bank, the 6th largest lender on the Chinese mainland, was priced at 8.55 HK dollars per share on the Shanghai exchange.
The bank's Hong Kong IPO has been oversubscribed 265 times, with its international IPO being oversubscribed 35 times. The bank's stock will begin trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange on Sept. 22.
Industry insiders said the rise and fall of BOC and ICBC shares will have a great influence on the Shanghai stock exchange index.
"At present, bank shares are experiencing a rising trend on the stock market." said Sun Yang, an analyst with China Securities Research Co. Ltd, a securities research institution.
ICBC plans to introduce strategic partners this year and the Agricultural Bank of China, also one of the "big fours", has initiated the share holder system reform.
The regrouping of these banks and increasing mergers and acquisitions of city commercial banks will prompt people to focus attention on prosperous bank shares, industrial insiders say. Enditem
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