ABN AMRO eyes Thai bank

ABN AMRO eyes Thai bank

BANGKOK (AFP): Dutch banking giant ABN AMRO will likely
announce the takeover of a Thai bank, becoming the second foreign
institution to take a controlling interest in a local commercial
bank, a report said yesterday.

Industry sources have predicted that the Dutch bank was likely
to announce the acquisition of between 51 and 75 percent of
Thailand's medium-sized Bank of Asia plc. Ltd. (BOA), the Nation
daily reported.

ABN AMRO, one of the world's largest financial institutions,
will reportedly gain its majority stake through new shares and
convertible debentures being issued by the Thai bank.

The likely ABN AMRO-BOA transaction comes in the wake of the
recent purchase of a controlling interest in Thai Danu Bank plc.
Ltd. (TDB) by the Development Bank of Singapore (DBS).

BOA has total assets of 158 billion baht (US$3.95 billion) and
reported a net loss of 432.5 million baht for the year ending
Dec. 31, 1997, the report said.