YIBIN BANK has signed a construction contract worth 86.499 million yuan for the renovation of its headquarters building, one year after its listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Located in an area renowned for its trillion-yuan liquor industry and emerging power battery cluster, YIBIN BANK has made a significant move following a year in the capital markets. On February 13, 2026, the bank signed the construction contract for the renovation project of its headquarters building, awarding the work to Jiantou Jiangang and Xinyi Jiantou as construction agents. This comes after the bank successfully listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on January 13, 2025, becoming the third listed bank in Sichuan Province and the only bank in China to go public in three years.

The renovation may only be the beginning. Currently, the banking sector is under pressure from narrowing net interest margins and accelerating interest rate liberalization. YIBIN BANK still faces several practical challenges to address.

The renovation project for YIBIN BANK's headquarters building, located in the Sanjiangkou CBD of Xuzhou District, Yibin City, was approved by the Xuzhou District Development and Reform Commission. The total investment is approximately 92.36 million yuan. The journey from project initiation to construction has been challenging, spanning 14 months.

On December 12, 2024, the construction agent first issued a tender announcement for the design segment. However, the tender failed three times due to insufficient bidders. It wasn't until March 2025, after adjusting the tender method to an open selection process and lowering certain thresholds, that the third design tender finally succeeded.

In September 2025, the project initiated a tender for cost consulting services, ultimately setting the maximum bid price at 92.3616 million yuan. In October, the tender for the supervision segment was opened, and Sichuan Zhuangyu Engineering Project Management Consulting Co., Ltd. won the bid with a price of 1.0847 million yuan. The supervision period is planned from February to October 2026. In January 2026, Sichuan Changlu Construction Engineering Testing Co., Ltd. won the bid for engineering quality testing services.

On December 18, 2025, the construction segment was publicly tendered with a maximum price limit of 92.3616 million yuan. The bid opening occurred on January 12, 2026, with Jiantou Jiangang Group Co., Ltd. becoming the primary winning candidate. After no objections were raised during the公示 period, the construction contract was signed on February 13 for 86.499 million yuan, approximately 6.3% lower than the maximum limit. A concurrent tender for building lighting was terminated in January 2026 due to planning adjustments and will be integrated into the main construction work.

Currently, the construction, supervision, and testing units have completed preliminary preparations. The project is scheduled to commence on February 1, 2026, and be completed by October 1, 2026. Upon completion, YIBIN BANK's headquarters is expected to become a new financial landmark in the Sanjiangkou CBD, further enhancing its visual prominence in the city's financial landscape.

The coincidence of the first anniversary of its listing and the building renovation might invite speculation, but there is no direct financial link between the two. The funds raised from YIBIN BANK's IPO were explicitly allocated for capital replenishment. The 92.36 million yuan for the building renovation comes from an independent project approval and funding channel, following standard procedures for local government-commissioned agency construction projects.

During its IPO, YIBIN BANK issued 688.4 million H shares globally at HK$2.59 per share, raising a net amount of HK$1.709 billion. According to the prospectus, the net proceeds from the global offering were intended to strengthen the capital base to support ongoing business growth, specifically targeting improvements in metrics like the core tier 1 capital adequacy ratio.

On its first trading day, YIBIN BANK's stock price remained stable, fluctuating between HK$2.59 and HK$2.69, even dipping below the issue price at one point. It closed at HK$2.61, a 0.77% increase, with a total turnover of HK$66.43 million for the day, resulting in a market capitalization of approximately HK$11.976 billion.

According to Lou Feipeng, a researcher at Postal Savings Bank of China, listing is one way for small and medium-sized banks to replenish capital. Factors such as tightened IPO policies, declining profitability due to narrowing net interest margins, and low overall bank valuations have made it difficult for small and medium-sized banks to go public. However, inspired by YIBIN BANK's successful listing, more banks might pursue listings this year.

Notably, YIBIN BANK was the first mainland bank to list in Hong Kong in nearly four years and the first bank to successfully complete an IPO in 2025.

Bank listings were once a crucial channel for expanding capital and standardizing governance within China's financial system. However, since the 2020s, this channel has nearly closed. On the A-share market, no bank has listed on the Shanghai or Shenzhen exchanges since Bank of Lanzhou in January 2022. In Hong Kong, Dongguan Rural Commercial Bank listed in September 2021, after which the market also fell silent.

Against this backdrop, YIBIN BANK submitted its listing application three times. The bank first applied in June 2023 and, after a year and a half, officially listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on January 13, 2025, becoming the third listed bank in Sichuan Province, following Bank of Chengdu and Luzhou Bank.

As of the end of June 2025, YIBIN BANK's total assets stood at 113.23 billion yuan, a 3.7% increase from the beginning of 2025. In the first half of 2025, the bank achieved operating income of 1.168 billion yuan, an 8.35% year-on-year increase. Net profit attributable to equity holders was 285 million yuan, a slight increase of 0.11% year-on-year. The non-performing loan ratio was 1.68%, unchanged from the beginning of the previous year, while the loan loss provision coverage ratio was 267%, up 10.36 percentage points. The capital adequacy ratio was 13.57%, the tier 1 capital adequacy ratio was 12.37%, and the core tier 1 capital adequacy ratio was 12.34%, all meeting regulatory requirements.