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City lender looking for foreign investors

By LI WENFANG AND GAO TAO (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-03-24 10:17
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ZHANJIANG, Guangdong province: Zhanjiang Commercial Bank, ranked 20th among city commercial banks in 2008 by comprehensive competitive strength, plans to offer some of its shares to a foreign bank next year to fuel its expansion, said Chairman Han Chunjian in an interview with China Daily.

The bank plans to sell 70 million more shares to raise 350 million yuan later this year in a bid to lift the bank's capital adequacy ratio to above 12 percent, the chairman said.

The bank sold 330 million shares held by the Zhanjiang city government to 10 domestic enterprises to raise 1.65 billion yuan in December.

The city government's holdings could fall to 14 percent after further sales of its shares, according to the chairman.

Zhanjiang Commercial Bank was founded in 1998, with assets of 1.74 billion yuan.

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The banks' assets currently total 27.7 billion yuan and operating profits hit 230 million yuan last year, with outstanding deposits at 24.3 billion yuan and outstanding loans at 15.1 billion yuan.

Chinese Banker magazine ranked it 20th for overall strength among 126 city commercial banks in 2008 and the second among city commercial banks in southern China.

Running a branch in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, and 45 sub-branches in Zhanjiang, the bank is preparing for the launch of branches in Shenzhen and Chongqing.

"We hope to become a medium-sized bank in Guangdong within five years and in the country in 10 years," said Han.

The bank also expects to make inroads into the wealth management business targeting local residents, he said.