Seven listed Chinese banks report $721 mln in Lehman exposure

Seven Chinese listed banks have announced bond holdings of 721 million U.S. dollars in the bankrupt U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers as of Monday, according to Securities Daily.

The individual exposures included 191.4 million U.S. dollars at China Construction Bank , 151.8 million U.S. dollars at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China , 128.8 million U.S. dollars at the Bank of China , 76 million U.S. dollars at the CITIC Bank, 70 million U.S. dollars at the China Merchants Bank, 70.02 million U.S. dollars at the Bank of Communication and 33.6 million U.S. dollars at the Industrial Bank.

CCB, with the largest exposure, said earlier it would closely monitor developments, prudently assess potential losses, make sufficient provision for impairment losses and protect the bank's legal rights.

The Lehman Brothers bankruptcy would not have a significant impact on CCB's financial situation, the bank said.

ICBC also said it was considering making provisions for its Lehnman exposure.

Source: Xinhua