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SYDNEY - Australia and New Zealand Banking Group said yesterday it had acquired a 10 per cent stake in Vietnam's top stock broker Saigon Securities Incorporation for US$88 million ($113 million), boosting its Asian expansion.
The acquisition values Saigon Securities at about US$880 million, compared with its Friday's market value of about US$481.3 million.
ANZ is paying around 283,360 Vietnamese dong ($22.50) per share, a hefty premium of about 83 per cent over Saigon's last trade price for its minority stake, based on the US dollar conversion.
ANZ senior managing director, Bob Edgar, said the strategic partnership with SSI would benefit ANZ's existing institutional capital markets business in the growing Vietnamese economy.
"This unique partnership combines the strong local market capabilities of SSI with ANZ's regional access, and builds on the existing relationship between the two organisations."
Saigon, which also advises state-owned companies undergoing privatisation and underwrites share and debt issues, reported a four times rise its first-quarter profit to US$28.8 million from a year ago. Quarterly revenue rose to US$35.5 million.
ANZ, Australia's third-biggest lender, has been aggressively expanding into Asia to offset any potential slowdown in its main Australia and New Zealand markets.
ANZ has spent about A$1.5 billion buying largely small minority stakes in banks from Indonesia to China and analysts are expecting new chief executive officer Michael Smith, who takes charge in October, to continue with ANZ's Asian growth strategy.
Smith has a strong background in Asian banking, having been HSBC Holdings' Asian business head.
ANZ has also been looking to boost its stockbroking business in Australia, and in April took control of Etrade Australia.
Established in 2000, Saigon Securities listed on the Hanoi stock exchange in December last year.
Vietnam has averaged GDP growth of more than 7.5 per cent for the past five years. Its industry and services sectors now account for more than 82 per cent of the economy.
- REUTERS
