SinoPac Holdings Co (建華金控), which has the second-highest percentage of overseas shareholders among Taiwanese lenders, said yesterday that it is open to any future expansion plans through merger and acquisition talks with other financial holding companies.
"The ultimate goal is to add value to the company by increasing gains for our shareholders and employees," SinoPac spokesman Kevin Peng (
Peng made the remarks in response to a newspaper report that SinoPac's board has decided to begin merger discussions with Cathay Financial Holding Co (
The report said that UK-based lenders such as Standard Chartered Plc and HSBC Holdings Plc are also interested in buying SinoPac.
"It's still premature for SinoPac to launch merger talks with any financial service institutions," Peng said. SinoPac is currently being advised by several investment banks, and may designate one of the banks to mastermind the plan in the future, he added.
Shares of SinoPac reacted positively to the news yesterday, rising NT$0.8, or 4.7 percent, to close at NT$17.7 per share on the TAIEX.
"Taiwan is still overcrowded, having a total of 14 financial holding companies," said William Fong (
In June, SinoPac suspended merger talks with China Development Financial Holding Corp (
But SinoPac "will be a coveted target for mergers since there are not too many good banks left in the marketplace," Fong said, referring to SinoPac's market performance in both its banking and securities arms.
Among all possible buyers, capital-affluent Cathay Financial is the most promising since it has been aggressive in taking over smaller rivals with strong securities arms.
SinoPac's securities arm will also be a worthwhile investment for both Chinatrust Financial and Fubon Financial, but the two possible contenders are currently too busy with other merger plans, Fong said.
Chinatrust Financial plans to complete its merger with Grand Commercial Bank (
Although it is willing to yield its controlling stake, SinoPac said yesterday that it hasn't reached any decision so far whether it will hold open auctions to proceed with the merger plan.
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