(2 June 2006 – China) China’s banking regulator has given Commonwealth Bank the go-ahead to put more capital into Jinan City Commercial Bank in order to keep its stake at 11 percent.CBA bought its stake in the Chinese bank in 2004 for US$17 million. It has the option to increase its stake to 19.9 percent by May 2008.
The Australian bank also bought a 19.9 percent stake in Hangzhou City Commercial Bank in September 2005 for US$77 million.
In further news, China’s banking regulator said it did not currently have any preference between Citigroup and Societe Generale over bids for Guangdong Development Bank.