Industrial and Commercial Bank of China:
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd. (ICBC; simplified Chinese: 中国工商银行; traditional Chinese: 中國工商銀行; pinyin: Zhōngguó Gōngshāng Yínháng, more commonly just 工行 Gōngháng) is a Chinese multinational banking company, and the largest bank in the world by total assets and by market capitalization. It is one of China's 'Big Four' state-owned commercial banks (the other three being the Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, and China Construction Bank). It was founded as a limited company on January 1, 1984. As of June 2015, it had assets worth US$3.616 trillion. Generally considered the largest bank in the world by assets; it is the first Chinese bank to achieve such a feat. It ranks number 1 in The Banker's Top 1000 World Banks ranking, and first on the Forbes Global 2000 list of the world's biggest public companies.
World's largest IPO (at the time):
ICBC was simultaneously listed on both the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and Shanghai Stock Exchange on 27 October 2006. It was the world's largest IPO at that time valued at US$21.9 billion, surpassing the previous record US$18.4 billion IPO by Japan's NTT DoCoMo in 1998.[14] In 2010, AgBank broke ICBC's IPO record when it raised $22.1 billion. China's largest commercial bank was also the first company to debut simultaneously on both the Hong Kong and Shanghai stock exchanges.
ICBC raised at least US$14 billion in Hong Kong (H-shares) and another US$5.1 billion in Shanghai (A-shares). Due to heavy subscriptions, the greenshoe (i.e. over-allotment) placements were exercised and ICBC's take rose to US$21.9 billion (17% of ICBC's market value before the IPO), divided in US$16 billion in Hong Kong and US$5.9 billion in Shanghai. Following the global offering, the free float of shares was 22.14% of the market capitalization.
At the end of its first day of trading, the bank's shares closed up almost 15% at HK$3.52 in Hong Kong, compared with the listing price of HK$3.07, which was set at the top of the indicative range due to the strong demand. According to Bloomberg, ICBC's market capitalisation at the end of trade based on its Hong Kong shares was US$156.3 billion, making its equity the world's fifth highest among banks, just behind JPMorgan Chase. Meanwhile, ICBC's Shanghai-listed A-shares recorded more modest gains and ended up 5.1% from the offering price of RMB 3.12.
On September 24, 2014, ICBC Kuwait Branch officially opened in Kuwait City, capital of Kuwait. As the first and currently the only Chinese bank in Kuwait, the establishment of ICBC Kuwait Branch ended the history of no Chinese bank’s presence in Kuwait. Meanwhile, it is also the fourth branch of ICBC in the Middle East, following branches in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha. Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce and Industry Abdulmohsen Al-Madaj, Chairman of ICBC Jiang Jianqing, and China’s ambassador to Kuwait Cui Jianchun and other officials and guests attended the opening ceremony held in Kuwait City on September 24.
ICBC is not only the first Chinese bank to set up operating branches in the Middle East, but also the biggest Chinese bank in the region in terms of total number of branches and business scale. The establishment of ICBC Kuwait Branch has further optimized the Bank’s service network in the Middle East and represents another important achievement of the Bank’s international operation strategy. ICBC Kuwait Branch has full-suite banking license, offering high-quality financial products and diversified and comprehensive financial services tailored to customers’ needs. Meanwhile, it will continue cooperating with other ICBC institutions in the Middle East to upgrade its comprehensive service capability in Kuwait.
As discussed by ICBC Senior Officials, the bank is open to alternative banking and financing and would like to seek more guidance on best practices.
2014 was an outstanding year for ICBC, ranking 1st in the Top 1000 World Banks, based on tier 1 capital, and also being recognised as The Banker's Global Bank of the Year.
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