CICC eyes listing next year
(Shenzhen Daily/Agencies)
Updated: 2006-02-17 09:47

China International Capital Corp. (CICC), Morgan Stanley's Chinese investment banking partner, is eyeing a stock listing for next year, a source familiar with the matter said Thursday.

The mainland's oldest and most successful Sino-foreign joint venture investment bank has been one of the leading underwriters of mainland initial public offerings (IPOs), and its shareholders had decided the time was right to list and preparations for an offering could begin later this year, the source said, adding that all plans were still very preliminary.

Moderate short-term capital needs for expansion has led the Beijing-based firm to shelve an earlier proposal for a private share placement and fast forward to the listing, the South China Morning Post reported, citing sources.

"More than fresh capital, a public float could provide an exit for some of its private equity shareholders, jump-start a staff incentive program and help improve corporate governance," a banker close to CICC told the newspaper.

A detailed initial public offering plan has yet to be worked out, but the mainland's largest investment bank favors Hong Kong as a listing venue to circumvent domestic restrictions on management incentive programs and to raise its international brand awareness, the paper quoted another source as saying.

Morgan Stanley struck a one-time deal in 1995 to establish China International Capital with China Construction Bank and take a 35 percent stake. State-owned Jianyin Investment Ltd. is the top shareholder, with 43.35 percent.