Bank of America raises stake in CCB
28 May 2008
Bank of America is raising its stake in China Construction Bank (CCB) to almost 10.8% from around 8.2%, the Wall Street Journal reported. The US lender will buy six billion shares at about US$0.31 in what will amount to an investment of around US$1.86 billion. The purchase follows the terms of an existing agreement that saw Bank of America purchase a 9% stake in the Chinese lender for US$3 billion in June 2005 with the option to gradually increase the stake to 19.9%. Bank of America said last year that its investment in CCB had generated a paper gain of US$30 billion. By increasing its holding, the bank is indicating its confidence in CCB's prospects, the paper said. "We've always been pretty confident in the position of the company long-term," a Bank of America spokesman was quoted as saying.