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Himpunan Saudara, Woori plan merger
Private lenders Bank Himpunan Saudara 1906 and Bank Woori Indonesia have announced their planned merger, through which they aim to cater to a wider base of customers in the retail and corporate segments
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rivate lenders Bank Himpunan Saudara 1906 and Bank Woori Indonesia have announced their planned merger, through which they aim to cater to a wider base of customers in the retail and corporate segments.
According to a statement published on Monday, the managements of both lenders say that Himpunan Saudara, a publicly listed bank that is part of the Medco Group conglomerate, will become the surviving entity after the merger.
It will be renamed 'Bank Woori Saudara Indonesia 1906', with 'Bank Woori Saudara' as its moniker.
Himpunan Saudara president director Yanto M. Purbo said they had submitted the necessary documents to the Financial Services Authority (OJK) and expected to acquire approval of the merger before year-end.
'That's the plan, but we'll see how long the process takes,' he told The Jakarta Post over the phone.
At present, the Bandung-based Himpunan Saudara is 27.3 percent controlled by businessman Arifin Panigoro, 27 percent by South Korea's Woori Bank, 32.8 percent by the investing public, 6 percent by Woori Indonesia, 3.7 percent by Medco Intidinamika and 3.2 percent by Medco Duta.
The ownership of the Jakarta-based Woori Indonesia, on the other hand, is made up of Woori Bank with 95.2 percent and Bank Danamon with 4.8 percent.
Following the merger, the ownership composition of the new bank will consist of Woori Bank with 66.7 percent, Arifin Panigoro with 12.4 percent, Danamon with 2.7 percent, Medco Intidinamika with 1.7 percent, Medco Duta with 1.5 percent and the investing public with 15 percent.
The announcement reveals that the merger will lead to the surviving entity having Rp 16.57 trillion (US$1.38 billion) in total assets, Rp 12.37 trillion in liabilities and Rp 4.2 trillion in equities by December.
Yanto said the merger would give Woori Saudara a wider customer base as well.
'Himpunan Saudara focuses more on retail, while Woori Indonesia serves corporate clients, especially South Korean companies. We are looking to serve the two segments after the merger is completed,' he said.
He added that the headquarters would remain in Bandung, West Java, citing Himpunan Saudara's status as the surviving entity. The statement also says that Yanto will still be at the helm of the management after the new bank is established.
Himpunan Saudara and Woori Indonesia are scheduled to hold an extraordinary general shareholders meeting on Nov. 7 in an effort to gain approval from their shareholders.
If all goes well, the merger will become the second banking consolidation to take place this year after a similar merger occurred between South Korean lenders Bank Hana and Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) in March.
The OJK has been calling on domestic banks to consolidate to achieve a more efficient banking industry. Indonesia currently has 119 commercial banks operating across the country.
The figure consists of four state-owned banks, 35 foreign exchange (forex) banks, 30 non-forex banks, 26 regional development banks, 14 joint venture banks and 10 foreign banks.
Data from Bank Indonesia (BI) and the OJK show that only one or two mergers or acquisitions took place on average per year during the past 10 years.
After the merger plan was made public, Himpunan Saudara's shares ' sold under the 'SDRA' code on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) ' ended at Rp 1,195 apiece on Monday, unchanged from last Friday.
