(Yicai Global) Dec. 17 -- Chinese real estate agency chain 5i5j Holding Group plans to buy a 100 percent stake in Nanchang ZhongHuan Network Information Service as it looks to build up a network of stores across the country.

5i5j will pay cash and issue stocks worth CNY5.1 (USD0.74) to settle the deal, the Yunnan province-based firm said in a filing to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange today. The pair are awaiting an audit of the target before finalizing the transaction price.

After completing the takeover, which still needs approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission, 5i5J plans to rapidly build up a network of branches spanning major cities in north, east, central and western regions.  This will make the firm more competitive and help it capture a larger market share, it added.

ZhongHuan Network was one of the earliest Chinese real estate agencies to adopt the franchise business model, and as of the end of October it had more than 2,400 franchisees across 17 cities, including its hometown Nanchang, and provincial capital of Hunan province Changsha.