Changshu Rural Commercial Bank is seeking a listing to raise capital in 2008, a source close to the matter said.

The lender has hired China Securities Co as adviser for the initial public offering, which is likely to fall in 2008, a source, who declined to be named before the official announcement, said yesterday.

Changshu Bank said it is preparing for the listing plan and declined to disclose any details.

The bank was set up in November 2001 in a restructuring of rural cooperatives. The bank's capital adequacy ratio, a key gauge of financial strength, stood at 11.11 percent at the end of 2006, above the regulatory minimum of 8.0 percent. Its total assets topped 24.43 billion yuan (US$3.3 billion) and it has more than 100 outlets.

Shanghai-based Bank of Communications, the fifth biggest lender in China, said in August that it will pay up to 380 million yuan to buy 10 percent of Changshu Bank. BoCom will be Changshu Bank's biggest shareholder after the transaction is completed.

The transaction is still pending a regulatory nod from the China Banking Regulatory Commission. Changshu Bank's registered capital will be raised to 575.6 million yuan from 518 million yuan after the transaction is completed.

BoCom, listed in Shanghai and Hong Kong, will appoint management to Changshu Bank, which is located in nearby Jiangsu Province. It declined comment yesterday.

(Shanghai Daily November 23, 2007)