China to recapitalise AgBank, CDB soon -CIC head

BEIJING, Dec 25 (Reuters) - China will soon provide capital injections for the long-planned restructuring of state-owned Agricultural Bank of China and China Development Bank (CDB), the head of the fund that will carry out the recapitalisations said on Tuesday.

Lou Jiwei, chairman of China Investment Corp (CIC), did not give a detailed timetable.

But his comments provide the clearest official signal yet that the restructuring of both CDB and AgBank [ABC.UL] is imminent, particularly after AgBank earlier this month denied reports that its restructuring plan had won Beijing's approval.

The injections will be carried out by Central Huijin, an investment arm of the central bank that was acquired earlier this year by CIC, the government's fledgling sovereign wealth fund.

"According to the plan approved by the State Council (the cabinet), Huijin will participate in the reform and restructuring of China Development Bank and Agricultural Bank of China in the near future," Lou told a financial conference.

Lou also said that Huijin had injected 20 billion yuan ($2.7 billion) into mid-sized lender Everbright Bank on Nov. 30, which puts it on course for a public listing next year.

AgBank is the only of China's big state-owned commercial banks yet to undergo restructuring, starting with an injection by Huijin and eventually bringing in strategic investors ahead of a public listing.

The government also aims to transform policy lender CDB into a more commercially orientated organisation.

Lou said that the returns from Huijin's investments in other state-owned banks, which include Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (1398.HK)(601398.SS) and Bank of China (3988.HK) (601988.SS), equal about half of the annual interest payments on the special bonds issued by the Finance Ministry to fund the CIC. ($1=7.3444 yuan) (Reporting by Eadie Chen; Writing by Jason Subler; Editing by Edmund Klamann)