CHINA International Capital Corp. (CICC), the country’s first investment bank, is asking competitors to pitch for roles on its initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong, sources with knowledge of the matter said yesterday.

    Bankers will meet the management of CICC in the coming weeks and then CICC will select banks that can handle the share sale. The Beijing-based company plans to start the share sale as early as the fourth quarter, said the sources. Several investment banks have received CICC’s request for proposals, the sources said.

    CICC was set up in 1995 by Morgan Stanley with China Construction Bank Corp., a pioneering move at the time. But after disputes emerged with the venture’s management over personnel, the firm’s culture and its dealings with other foreign banks, Morgan Stanley became a passive investor in CICC and sold its 34.3 percent stake in 2010.

    Morgan Stanley sold its stake to a consortium comprised of Government of Singapore Investment Corp., Great Eastern Holdings Ltd., the insurer controlled by Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp., private equity firms Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and TPG Capital in December 2010. The parties didn’t disclose the consideration of the transaction, but people familiar with the situation said at the time that the consortium spent about US$1 billion for the stake.

    CICC ranks No. 7 among underwriters of Hong Kong share sales this year.

    A Beijing-based spokeswoman for CICC declined to comment on the IPO plan. The Wall Street Journal reported CICC’s listing preparations earlier yesterday, citing unidentified people. (SD-Agencies)