(Yicai Global) July 1 -- Central Huijin Investment’s transfer of all of the 19.53 percent of equity it holds in China Everbright Bank to the bank’s controller China Everbright Group has won regulatory approval, Everbright Bank said in a statement yesterday. The move is expected to propel Everbright Group, which has assets of more than CNY5 trillion (USD707.8 billion), to seek a group listing, analysts said.

The transaction will clarify Everbright Group's equity relationship, strengthen its image and stature as a financial holding group and better coordinate and capitalize it, Beijing-based Everbright Bank said in the statement.

State-backed investment institution Central Huijin Investment plans to unload all its 10.3 billion shares in the company onto Everbright Group, Everbright Bank said earlier this year in a statement. The group's direct and indirect holding in the bank will thus rise to 48.53 percent from 29 percent.

China's cabinet the State Council gave its stamp to CITIC Group, Everbright Group and PingAn Insurance Group of China piloting comprehensive financial holding groups in 2002. Ping An Insurance went public in 2004, and CITIC did so in 2014. Tang Shuangning, then chairman of Everbright Group, proposed the goal of "going public as a whole in five years," in January 2013, but this never eventuated.

The group's current shareholders are Beijing-headquartered Central Huijin Investment with 63.16 percent equity, China's Ministry of Finance, which owns 33.43 percent, and the National Council for Social Security Fund at 3.4 percent. Everbright Group had total assets of CNY5.21 trillion and realized CNY47.4 billion (USD6.7 billion) in net profits as of the end of last year, while Everbright Bank, which sat on CNY4.73 trillion in assets, realized CNY37.4 billion in net profits.

Everbright Bank's shares [SHA:601818] were up 0.28 percent at CNY3.59 (59 US cents) in mid-morning trading.

Editors: Chen Juan, Ben Armour