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.