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Malaysia's Maybank to buy Indonesia's sixth-largest bank

Business Materials 26 March 2008 12:05 (UTC +04:00)

(dpa) - Malaysia's largest bank, Maybank, announced Tuesday that it won a bid to acquire Indonesia's sixth-largest financial institution, Bank Internasional Indonesia, for 8.6 billion ringgit (2.7 billion dollars) as part of its regional expansion.

Maybank said it agreed to buy Sorak Financial Holdings Pte Ltd, which owns 55.7 per cent of Bank Internasional, and would later tender an offer for the remaining 44-per-cent stake.

Sorak is 75-per-cent owned by Temasek Holdings, the Singapore government's investment arm, with the remaining 25 per cent held by Kookmin Bank of South Korea.

"The proposed acquisition, expected to be completed within six months, will be financed via internally generated funds and/or borrowings," the company said in a statement released by the official Bernama news agency.

Maybank was among several global financial institutions that bid for the stake in Bank Internasional.

The Indonesian institution, which has more than 230 branches, is listed on the Jakarta Stock Exchange and ranks as Indonesia's sixth-largest bank in term of assets and operates in all major banking segments.

"The acquisition will transform Maybank's growth prospects in Indonesia and is a huge step forward in its strategy to regionalize its operations," said Maybank's acting chief executive officer, Aminuddin Mohamad Desa.

"We are excited as the Indonesian banking sector remains underpenetrated with excellent long-term growth potential," he said.

The acquisition followed Maybank announcement last week that it plans to buy 15 per cent of Vietnam's An Binh Bank for 430 million ringgit.

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