Kazakhstan's Bank Caspian plans IPO in 2009
By Olzhas Auyezov
ALMATY, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Bank Caspian CSBN.KZ, Kazakhstan's No.8 bank, plans an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 2009, its Chief Executive Mikhail Lomtadze said on Thursday.
Kazakh banks have sought to raise their international profile by tapping global debt markets and placing shares on leading foreign stock exchanges including London.
Lomtadze did not say which stock exchange his bank, controlled by Russian private equity firm Baring Vostok Capital Partners, was aiming at and how much it might float.
"An IPO has always been part of our long-term plans," Lomtadze told Reuters by telephone.
He said his bank's shareholders had yet to decide whether it would use its existing shares or issue new ones for the IPO.
"This will be decided by the time we hold the IPO," Lomtadze said.
The global credit crunch hit Kazakh banks hard last year due to their high exposure to global debt, but Bank Caspian, seen as a conservative borrower, has called the liquidity squeeze an opportunity to expand its market share.
Lomtadze said the IPO plan did not stem from any liquidity problems at the bank, which focuses mainly on retail banking.
"It is not a result of shareholders' desire to get some liquidity," he said.
Three Kazakh banks -- Kazkommertsbank (KKGByq.L), Halyk (HSBKq.L) and Alliance (ALLBq.L) have already floated their stock in London, raising around $700 million to $800 million each.
Bank Caspian has a market capitalisation of about $900 million on the mostly illiquid Kazakh stock market. (Reporting by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by David Holmes)
