Civil Bank to float primary shares on December 10

Civil Bank will float primary shares to the public on December 10.

"The bank, which is on the verge of issuing shares to the general public, has been organising interaction programmes at various places across the country," said chief executive Kishore Maharjan. The 30th commercial bank of the country will issue eight million units of shares worth Rs 800 million.

Currently, 26 commercial banks have listed over 510.77 million units of shares at Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse), with a total paid up value of over Rs 51.07 billion. Civil Bank will be the 27th commercial bank to list its shares at Nepse that is dominated by banks and financial institutions due to the dismal performance of manufacturing companies.

There are still five commercial banks that need to float primary shares to the public according to the central bank regulation.

The secondary market is currently showing favourable signs for investment and Civil Bank's issue is also expected to provide a good opportunity to small and medium investors, said Maharjan, adding that the capital market is expected to garner attention from the general public towards primary shares after the issuance of shares of Civil Bank that posted an operating profit of Rs 35.6 million in the first quarter of the current fiscal year.

The bank was able to mobilise deposits worth Rs 10.3 billion and disburse loans and advances worth Rs 9.24 billion during the period.

The bank — that is issuing the second largest public offering after Agriculture Development Bank — has appointed Citizens Investment Trust, NCM Capital Markets, ACE Capital Markets and Nabil Investment as issue managers for its Initial Public Offering (IPO).

Civil Bank — that has successfully completed its second year of operation — has a total of 15 branches spread across prime locations of the country.

The interaction programme in Pokhara today saw the participation of respected personalities from the industrial and commercial sectors of the country including enthusiasts of the share market. It will organise another interaction in Birgunj tomorrow.