The plan for the last of the big four state-owned banks to be reformed will likely include a write-off, incorporation, foreign investment and listing. It is likely to be revealed during the Financial Work Meeting, a workshop that is held once every five years since the first one in 1997.

So far no details, such as bailout amount and ownership structure, have been made public of the lender's reform plan.

The bank has scheduled its annual meeting for its 2007 development plan in early February, and will probably discuss more details of its restructuring plan, sources said.

It is widely expected that a government bailout totalling US$50 billion is needed to push the biggest lender for China's 800 million farmers to a listing.

The other three state-owned banks - Bank of China, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and China Construction Bank - have received a combined US$60 billion government bailout and are listed in Shanghai or Hong Kong.

It is reported earlier that the central government was pondering to split the ABC into different regional banks, but this was apparently resisted by the lender's management which wanted it to remain whole.

The bank selected China International Capital Corp and Citic Securities Co as financial advisers for its restructuring, International Finance News reported yesterday citing unnamed sources.

The Beijing-based lender declined to comment while the broker was not available for comment on the deal yesterday.

Shares of Citic Securities Co, China's only listed broker, gained yesterday to 33.72 yuan (US$4.34).

"The reports, though unconfirmed, helped thrust the broker as the ABC case means big bucks in the future despite the bank still having a long way to go for its listing plan," said Zhang Qi, a Haitong Securities Co analyst.

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