China Minsheng Banking, the country's first privately owned bank, has postponed plans to sell shares in Hong Kong this year, China Radio International reported Wednesday.

The share listing, originally scheduled to occur before January, will go ahead sometime in 2005-2006.

It gave no reason for the delay, which has been approved by the bank's board of directors and is due for a vote by shareholders on December 24.

Beijing-based Minsheng hopes to raise as much as $1 billion with the listing.

Minsheng, founded in 1996, was China's first bank to be launched with private shareholders and is generally considered among the country's strongest banks.

Earlier this week, state media reported that China's bank regulators have approved the purchase of a 4.55 percent stake in Minsheng by Asia Financial Holdings, a unit of the Singapore government's main investment arm, Temasek Holdings Pte. Ltd.

Source: CRI news