The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the country's largest lender, intends to list simultaneously in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

 

The Shanghai Securities News reported yesterday that the bank is planning a dual listing at a single initial public offering (IPO) price within the year, citing an unidentified person close to the deal.

 

The bank's IPO in Hong Kong is expected to raise more than US$12 billion and the listing in Shanghai will raise at least 20 billion yuan (US$2.5 billion), the report said.

 

The ICBC previously planned to follow a listing path recently taken by Bank of China, which raised US$9.7 billion in its Hong Kong IPO and 20 billion yuan (US$2.5 billion) in a Shanghai listing a month later.

 

"The ICBC may adopt a different approach from Bank of China, as market regulators move towards simultaneous listings," the Shanghai Securities News quoted sources close to the bank's management team as saying.

 

"Such a listing will give fair treatment to investors," said Dong Chen, an analyst with CITIC China Securities.

 

Under a simultaneous listing, A-share investors would avoid paying higher premiums than H-shares investors so that they can benefit from the reform of the domestic State-owned commercial bank.

 

In addition, the bank could maximize fund-raising efficiency by lowering costs, Dong told China Daily.

 

ICBC officials said they were still studying the listing plan and that there was no essential difference between listing in Hong Kong first or listing simultaneously in the two markets.

 

Previous reports said the ICBC would submit a listing application to the Hong Kong stock exchange in July for listing in October.

 

However, the Shanghai Securities News said whether the bank could get listed according to this timetable depended on government approval.

 

It said the China Securities Regulatory Commission had not approved its listing proposal. And the listing size and the financing proportion in Hong Kong and Shanghai had yet to be decided.

 

With Bank of China easily raising 20 billion yuan (US$2.5 billion) in the mainland's biggest IPO only a month after its Hong Kong listing, bankers believe the time is ripe for simultaneous listings, or even listing on the domestic market first.

 

The mainland is looking to boost the domestic market with high quality listings after the biggest mainland companies sold their shares overseas, mostly in Hong Kong.

 

"The stock performance of the big companies, like Bank of China, has heavy impacts on the overall stock market," said Dong Chen.

 

Completing a single price and simultaneous listing, however, is seen as complicated, as the Hong Kong and Shanghai markets differ in terms of mechanisms and environment.

 

Such a deal also requires two sets of investment banks, adding to the risk.

 

Sources said the bank has selected four local underwriters for its A-share listing, including China International Capital Co (CICC), CITIC Securities Co, Shenyin & Wanguo Securities Co and Guotai Jun'an Securities Co.

 

It appointed Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Merrill Lynch, ICEA and a consortium led by CICC to underwrite its Hong Kong share sale at the beginning of this year.

 

(China Daily July 14, 2006)