Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the nation's largest lender, announced Wednesday it would list in Shanghai and Hong Kong on October 27 in what could be a world-record initial public offering. In a prospectus published in China's official financial press, the bank said it would issue 13 billion yuan-denominated A-shares in Shanghai, subject to an extra allotment option that could lift the total to 14.95 billion share.
The Beijing-based lender also said it would issue 35.4 billion shares in Hong Kong, which similarly, depending on demand, could be raised to 40.7 billion shares.
The pricing of the IPO will be announced four days ahead of the listing, according to the company notice carried by the Shanghai Securities Journal said.
However, widespread reports say the bank will raise between 18-21 billion dollars in its dual-listing, which could overtake the previous record float of 18.4 billion dollars by Japan's mobile phone operator NTT DoCoMo in 1998.
ICBC cleared the final regulatory hurdle on Monday when the China Securities Regulatory Commission approved its IPO plan.
It received the nod from Hong Kong and Shanghai exchanges last week.
ICBC has drawn investment from the Kuwait Investment Authority, China's top insurer, China Life, and a number of leading Hong Kong businessmen, including Li Ka-shing, Asia's richest man.
The Qatar Investment Authority will also invest 1.6 billion Hong Kong dollars (205 million US).
ICBC's share sale makes it the third of China's big four banks to list offshore after China Construction Bank, which floated in Hong Kong last year, and Bank of China, which listed in Hong Kong in June, and then in Shanghai in July.
Troubled Bank of Agriculture is still awaiting the kind of restructuring and capital injections that prepared ICBC and the other institutions for an IPO.
Source: Agence France-Presse
