China Minsheng Banking Corp is delaying its search for a new foreign partner and aims to sell most of a planned share placement to its top 10 existing shareholders, industry sources said yesterday.

 

The Shanghai-listed lender, China's third largest and the nation's first private bank, is due to hold a shareholders' meeting in Beijing next Tuesday to approve the placement, which is expected to raise around US$1.5 billion.

 

No foreign investor except Singapore's Temasek Holdings, which currently owns almost 4 percent of the bank, will have the opportunity to buy new shares in the placement, the banking sources said.

 

About 10 overseas companies including Belgian-Dutch financial services group Fortis, France's Societe Generale and US private equity firm Carlyle Group have at various times expressed potential interest in a stake in Minsheng.

 

Minsheng, a medium-sized bank based in Beijing, declined to comment.

 

The bank originally intended to obtain a new foreign partner this year. Many Chinese banks have been seeking foreign strategic partners to gain capital and expertise in the past few years.

 

"But things have become more complicated after Minsheng's management reshuffle, and the plan may be delayed until 2007," said an industry insider.

 

When Minsheng conducts its private placement, Temasek is unlikely to become the biggest single shareholder because major domestic shareholders including Liu Yonghao, one of the country's richest businessmen, are keen to keep the bank under local control, the sources said.

 

"Liu Yonghao still hopes to remain the largest shareholder in Minsheng Bank, although Temasek may increase its stake through the share sale to become number two or number three," said the insider.

 

The Singaporean Government's investment vehicle Temasek is currently Minsheng's seventh-largest shareholder.

 

The private placement would boost Minsheng's capital adequacy ratio to about 10 percent from about 8.3 percent currently, slightly above the minimum regulatory requirement of 8 percent, the sources said.

 

"In that case, Minsheng won't feel too anxious any more to secure a new foreign partner for capital. It is also unlikely that Chinese regulators would allow Minsheng to issue more shares to a new foreign partner so soon this year," said another Beijing-based banking source.

 

Liu, 55, chairman of the country's biggest agricultural conglomerate New Hope Group, holds a combined stake of nearly 9 percent in Minsheng Bank with his daughter through units of his New Hope Group.

 

Liu, former vice-chairman of Minsheng Bank, did not keep his position in a management reshuffle last month, though New Hope still has a representative on the board.

 

"Liu has decided to firm up his power in the bank by increasing his stake," said another Chinese banker close to Liu.

 

Liu expects to increase its stake to around 10 percent of Minsheng through an investment arm of his New Hope in the share placement, while Temasek's stake is expected to be close to but still smaller than Liu's stake, the sources said.

 

Other investors in Minsheng include Orient Co, a major private industrial firm owned by Chinese businessman Zhang Hongwei, Minsheng's vice-chairman. Orient may compete with Temasek for the position of second or third biggest shareholder in Minsheng, the sources said.

 

(China Daily August 3, 2006)