China's stock watchdog has approved Everbright Securities Co's plan to sell shares in Shanghai, paving the way for the first initial public offering in the country by a securities firm in more than five years.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission approved the plan by China's 10th largest brokerage by assets to sell as many as 520 million shares at a meeting yesterday, according to a statement on the regulator's Website.

Everbright will use cash from the IPO, the first since Citic Securities Co's 2003 offer, to increase its outlets to more than 100 and boost hiring. The brokerage has had three straight years of profit, meeting regulatory requirements, after a stock market rally last year helped the industry recover from a loss of 7.8 billion yuan (US$1.14 billion) in 2005.

Everbright has not said how much it aims to raise, and it will be selling shares in a market that has slumped 47 percent this year.

(Shanghai Daily July 1, 2008)