First mainland commercial lender to list overseas rises 13pc
Bank of Communications (Bocom) had a solid trading debut yesterday, rising as much as 16 per cent at one stage, with the mainland lender vowing to strengthen its retail business over the next five years.
Shares of Bocom, the first mainland bank to list overseas, closed at $2.825, 13 per cent higher than its issue price of $2.50, after reaching a high of $2.90 in the morning.
Turnover was robust with $5.15 billion worth of shares changing hands, reflecting the massive interest in an offering whose retail tranche was 204 times subscribed.
'As the first mainland commercial bank to list in Hong Kong our stock performance is testimony to market recognition of our sound corporate governance, strong capital base, good asset quality and close partnership with HSBC,' Bocom chairman Jiang Chaoliang said after the listing ceremony.
'In five years, we aim to generate more than 20 per cent of our revenue from retail banking.'
At the end of last year, retail banking accounted for 10.1 per cent of revenue while corporate banking accounted for 63.3 per cent.