BEIJING, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- A total of six banks have listed their initial public offerings (IPO) on the A-share market this year, hitting a three-year high, Securities Daily reported Tuesday.
The number will continue to increase as another 16 banks are on the waiting list for the approval of their IPO applications on the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses, according to the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
In breakdown, nine banks have filed their IPO applications to the Shanghai Stock Exchange and seven banks applied to be listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.
A total of 11 rural commercial banks accounted for nearly 70 percent of the applicants, which are all local commercial banks.
Rural commercial banks have expanded to be major players in China's banking sector, said the paper.
The latest data showed that by the end of June 2019, the total number of rural commercial banks in China has grown to 1,423, over 10 times the number of urban commercial banks.
The total number of banks listed on the A-share market has climbed to 34, as the regulator has encouraged banks to strengthen their capital supply.
