Bank of China gets key approval for HK IPO0 @* h" e. k( K3 w- ?9 X
Bank of China, China's top foreign exchange lender, has secured key approval from the State Council to launch a HK$60 billion (US$7.7 billion) Hong Kong initial public offering in the first half of 2006, a Hong Kong newspaper reported on Monday.; n' M0 k' t' P1 a7 G, n
The listing plan awaited a final approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the South China Morning Post reported, citing sources close to the situation.6 r7 U! q; P1 a3 t, m. k+ s* h, \
The bank may file a preliminary listing application with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange as soon as this week, the paper added.
6 K3 J: U4 p4 e3 F+ j The offering, which Bank of China previously planned to complete before April, was now most likely to be launched in May, the paper quoted the sources as saying.
+ S0 v2 }# z- M$ c, l+ o0 y The offering would value the bank at 400 billion yuan (US$49.6 billion), the paper said. |