China Railway Express Co., owned by the Ministry of Railways, is planning a Shanghai listing late this year to raise funding for expanding its business, two sources familiar with the situation said on Tuesday.

The company, a rail-based express delivery firm and a partner of national postal service operator China Post, has hired Guotai Junan Securities Co. to help it with preparations for the initial public offering of shares in Shanghai, the sources said.

China Railway Express has also hired a global accounting firm to assist it with auditing for the IPO and that work is expected to be finished soon, they said.

China Railway Express expects to raise around $500 million and may also seek a foreign partner as it proceeds with the offering, said one of the sources, who declined to be identified.

The size of fund-raising has not been settled yet, however, and will partly depend on the market environment at the time, the source added.

Beijing is reforming its railway system and encouraging rail companies to go public, in order to boost their capital and strengthen their management.