Bank TuranAlem (Kazakhstan) will place its shares among international investors

/IRBIS, Feb.22, 00/ - REUTERS informs, with the reference to the chairman of the bank Erjan Tatishev, that this year Kazakhstani bank TuranAlem intends to increase its shareholders' equity by placing shares among international investors and in domestic market. "Our goal is to increase the number of bank shareholders, essentially improve the quality of our shareholders so that there will be international institutions, international investment funds, domestic investors among them", he said. He said subdivision of the World bank - International financial corporation (IFC) could be the first international shareholder of the bank. He believes they could acquire one of such shareholders in the first half of this year. He also said the bank had signed $15 mln loan agreement for seven years with further conversion of part of the loan into the shares of the bank with IFC last September. Tatishev said the bank planned to place part of the shares issued in December, which equals to $10-$15 mln, among international investment funds. Remaining part of the shares, he says, will be placed on domestic market. The chairman said their potential investors were their clients, pension funds, insurance companies, and private persons. The bank offers services to 30,000 legal entities, including Kazakhstan temir joly (railroads), Kazatomprom, Kaztransoil, Kazakhoil, Gosprodkorporatsya, JV Tengizneftgaz, JV Tengizchevroil, Ust-Kamenogorsk titanium-magnesium combine, Balkhash mining combine, export-import oriented enterprises and others.