The board of Shin Kong Financial Holding Co (新光金控) yesterday agreed to sell part of the operations of its wholly owned brokerage unit Shin Kong Securities (新壽證券) to Masterlink Securities Corp (元富證券) for NT$430.7 million (US$12.7 million), a company executive said.
A stock exchange filing showed this includes the sale of a Shin Kong-owned property worth NT$110.7 million.
After the acquisition, Masterlink Securities will have a combined market share of 4.56 percent in the brokerage business, making it the nation’s fifth-largest company in the field, Victor Hsu (�?, president of Shin Kong Financial said.
Before the deal, Masterlink Securities was the nation’s 10th largest brokerage while Shin Kong Securities ranked 29th, Hsu said.
Both firms are expected to seek final approval from shareholders at annual general meetings in June before facilitating the acquisition in October, he said.
Shin Kong Financial, with a 25.26 percent stake in Masterlink Securities, will remain the biggest shareholder of the post-merger brokerage unit, while being recapitalized with fresh funds after the sell-off of its brokerage unit, Hsu said.
The Shin Kong board yesterday also gave preliminary approval to the generation of up to NT$2 billion through the issuance of common shares and global depository receipts or through a private placement, pending approval from shareholders, the company said.
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