BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of China (BOC) plans to issue new Hong Kong-listed H shares, about 20 percent of its current H shares, as soon as possible, said BOC Board Chairman Xiao Gang Thursday.

But the BOC had to wait for approvals from shareholders and securities regulators on the mainland and in Hong Kong, Xiao said.

The BOC, China's third largest bank by market value, in January declared it would sell no more than 40 billion yuan (5.86 billion U.S. dollars) of bonds convertible to A shares to improve capital adequacy.

The BOC currently had no acquisition plans in China or overseas, Xiao said.

The biggest credit risks lied in the local governments' financing units and the BOC was tightening loans to these units, he said.