China Construction Bank (CCB) will this month announce its transformation from a state-owned firm into a shareholding concern to pave the way for a listing, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post said on Saturday.
"We are completing the preparation for the restructuring to be a shareholding company.
The deadline is September," Yu Baoyue, a director of the bank's press office, was quoted by the newspaper as saying.
"This will pave the way for China Construction Bank to go public," he added.
The Chinese bank was not immediately available to comment on the report. The state-owned property lender has been expected to push an initial public offering both at home and overseas by 2005 that is expected to raise as much as US$10 billion - making it the largest-ever initial offer by a Chinese firm. The newspaper said Yu would not comment about the timing of the initial public offering but said the bank would provide a date "in the near future".
Some media reports have stated the bank will hold a press conference on September 15 but the bank would not confirm this, the Post said.