Seven Group Holdings (ASX:SVW) Applied for Shares in Agricultural Bank of China IPO

Sydney, June 23, 2010 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Australian media mogul Kerry Stokes' Seven Group Holdings (ASX:SVW) confirmed it has applied for shares in Agricultural Bank of China's (AgBank) massive initial public offering (IPO) and expects a decision shortly. The maximum value applied for is US$250 million.

If the application successful, Seven will become a cornerstone investor in AgBank, one of China's Big Four banks. Seven's investment will be a strategic step for Seven to further link with and assist its WesTrac heavy equipment business in North Eastern China.

The AgBank offering is expected to raise maximum US$30 billion on the Hong Kong and Shanghai stock exchanges. This will be the world's largest ever IPO, beating out ICBC's (SHA:601398) (HKG:1398) US$21.9 billion dual listing in 2006.

In the Hong Kong tranche of the IPO, 95 per cent of the stakes will be taken by international investors with cornerstone investors absorbing 40 per cent.

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Michelle Liang Asia Business News Asia Bureau Tel: +61-2-9247-4344 Email: michelle.liang@abnnewswire.net