Shareholders of Shenzhen Development Bank Co, controlled by buyout firm TPG Inc, plan to raise 8 billion yuan (US$1.05 billion) selling subordinated debt to replenish capital that has dropped below a government mandated minimum and crimped its growth.

The bonds will have a maturity of between five and 15 years and be sold within 18 months upon shareholder approval, the Shenzhen-based bank said in a statement to the city's exchange on Saturday, without giving more details.

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Shenzhen Development needs funds to meet a capital adequacy requirement that's preventing it from opening more branches and offering new loans in a nation where lending grew an average 15 percent during the past five years. Shareholders on June 8 approved the bank's revised plan to make all its stock tradable, lifting a funding hurdle.

The bank must shore up its capital adequacy ratio, a key measure of financial strength, to the 8 percent minimum required by the regulator. Its ratio stood at 3.8 percent as of March 31.

Shenzhen Development may also raise 4 billion yuan from exercising six-month warrants it offers to investors, boosting its core capital adequacy ratio to more than 5.5 percent, Chairman Frank Newman said June 8. If it doesn't get regulatory approval for the warrants this month, it may opt to sell shares in a private placement.

The bank's stock almost doubled in value this year, the best performance among the nation's 10 listed banks, as it improved asset quality and earnings. The stock will resume trading on June 20.

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