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| Merchants Bank hikes Hong Kong IPO by 10% |
| News Archive - Industry Headline - September news | |
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(ShanghaiDaily, Sept 29, 2006) CHINA Merchants Bank Co, the country's most profitable lender, increased the size of its Hong Kong initial public offering by 10 percent to HK$20.7 billion (US$2.66 billion). The Shenzhen-based bank sold 220 million more shares at the issue price of HK$8.55, it said yesterday, as sale arrangers China International Capital Corp, JPMorgan Chase & Co and UBS AG exercised an over-allotment option to meet demand, Bloomberg News reported. Investors earlier this month ordered 53 times more stock of Merchants Bank than was first offered in its US$2.4 billion share sale. The bank's shares gained 25 percent on their first trading day, making it the best debut of the four Chinese lenders that have sold shares in the city. Growth at the nation's sixth-largest lender by assets is gaining momentum as China Merchants offers higher-margin products such as dual-currency credit cards. China's economy grew 10.9 percent in the first half, the fastest pace in a decade, spurring demand for financial services ranging from asset management to mortgages. Merchants Bank forecast this year it will earn 5.5 billion yuan, or 0.38 yuan a share, 47 percent more than last year, as a recent interest rate increase may improve the spread between its lending and deposit rates. Its bad-loan ratio was 2.3 percent as of June 30, the lowest among the nation's four publicly traded lenders in Hong Kong. source:ShanghaiDaily |
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