OJSC "Bank TuranAlem" (Kazakhstan) intends to sell part of its shares on the market

/KASE, Dec.07, 99/ - This week OJSC "Bank TuranAlem" (Almaty, official list of securities, category "A") intends to sell in an organized market of Kazakhstan through KASE a significant volume of previously placed shares thanks to preliminary work among its shareholders. The bank aims at solving the following issues by this step: - Bringing out to free market big numbers of its shares will let OJSC "Bank TuranAlem" to increase the number of its shareholders remarkably (as of August 27 there were 12 of them), and thus, get closer to established standards. - Selling shares, previously placed among the shareholders, will allow to determine the price for the next planned 5th issue for a total of 4.0 bln tenge to be offered public. - With significant number of shares freely trading, affiliated subdivision of the bank - LLP "TuranAlem-securities" would be able to take responsibilities of a specialist or a market-maker for the bank's shares, which will stimulate the trade in these securities on KASE. OJSC "Bank TuranAlem", based on the decision of shareholders annual general meeting, has numerous plans for this year. In addition to issues and a strategy, mentioned above, the bank plans to issue inscribed coupon bonds ($100 par value for a total of 2 bln tenge, 11% semiannual coupon). The meeting delegated the Board of directors, in order to attract investors, to develop benefits system on primary offering of these bonds, including a possibility of offering a discount form a par value. OJSC "Bank TuranAlem" was established on January 15, 1997 as a result of a merger between JSB "AlemBank Kazakhstan" and CJSCB "Turanbank". Initially, the bank was registered as joint stock company of closed type with 100% of shares belonging to the government. In March 1998 the bank was recapitalized by the government and privatized at closed auction, and 100% of shares were bought by a consortium of private Kazakhstani companies. On June 6, 1998 - was reregistered in a joint stock company of open type, on September 30, 1998 - into a open joint stock company. Today, OJSC "Bank TuranAlem" is an universal bank, which offers all banking services available in Kazakhstani market, and has big corporate clients, including major energy, telecommunication, transportation, oil and gas producing, metal exporting and other companies. Banking services of OJSC "Bank TuranAlem" account for 15% of the market. The bank ranks the second after OJSC "Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan" based on the number of individual clients (private persons) and can be regarded as one of the biggest and the safest banks of the country. Currently, OJSC "Bank TuranAlem" is the second among Kazakhstani banks by the size of shareholders' equity, which amounts to 5.4 bln tenge. Bank assets as of November 1 is estimated at 41.6 bln tenge, whereas average for six biggest banks of the country is 33.2 bln tenge. In August of 1998 the bank received long term debt rating of B from Thomson BankWatch, in October of 1998 the rating B2 from Moody's Investor Services, Inc. As of March 1, 1999, no changes have been made into the bank's ratings. By the decision of the Exchange's council of KASE, common inscribed shares of the first and the second issues were included into an official list of securities of the stock exchange in category "A". Trades in these securities are held from September 21 of current year.