China Everbright Group's banking unit China Everbright Bank announced yesterday its board approved the financial restructuring plan and Central Huijin Investment Co Ltd will soon complete its 20 billion yuan cash injection into the bank.

"The bank is awaiting a final approval from the shareholders, and the bank will hold shareholders' meeting within the month to approve the plan," Tang Shuangning, chairman of China Everbright Group, a State-owned financial conglomerate, said yesterday.

Central Huijin will obtain a 70.92 percent stake in the bank at 1 yuan per share, and the injection will greatly increase the bank's capital.

The cash injection will lift the bank's capital adequacy ratio from the current 5.97 percent to 7.13 percent.

The board also discussed reregistering the bank to adjust its registered capital from 8.2 billion yuan to 28.2 billion yuan, Tang said.

The capital injection would pave the way for the bank to sell stakes to strategic investors before moving forward with a stock market listing.

According to Tang, Everbright Bank is preparing to introduce a listing for three strategic investors before its initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong and in the mainland A-share market.

The bank has been negotiating with dozens of foreign strategic investors, Tang said yesterday without specifying who these investors are.

The bank expects to complete its reform before next year and get listed early next year if the restructuring is approved.

"The bank may get listed earlier next year once it gets the nod from supervisory bodies to go public," Tang said.

The bank's non-performing loan ratio stood at more than 6 percent at the end of 2006.

Currently, China Everbright Group is the bank's largest shareholder with a 24.16 percent stake. And China Everbright Group's Hong Kong-listed unit, China Everbright Ltd, owns 21.4 percent stake.

Tang told media yesterday that the bank's restructuring would not influence Hong Kong-listed China Everbright Ltd, whose share price stumbled noticeably after the bank released its restructuring plan.

(China Daily November 15, 2007)