China's Zheshang Bank plans Hong Kong IPO

HANGZHOU - China Zheshang Bank, a commercial lender in East China, is seeking as much as HK$11.767 billion ($1.516 billion) from a Hong Kong IPO.

The Hangzhou-based bank began offering 3.3 billion shares at HK$3.92 to HK$4.12 apiece for sale from 9 a.m. on Wednesday.

The pricing for the IPO is expected to be confirmed on March 21, to be followed by its trading debut on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on March 30, according to a post on the company's website.

It said five cornerstone investors, including Zhejiang Seaport Group, Alipay Hong Kong backed by e-commerce giant Alibaba Group and brokerage Shenwan Hongyuan Group, agreed to buy as much as $1.01 billion of shares.

Zheshang Bank had total assets of 1 trillion yuan ($154 billion) and 128 outlets across China as of Sept 30, 2015.