Bakrie to form consortium to buy Bank Pacific
Bakrie to form consortium to buy Bank Pacific
JAKARTA (JP): Bakrie Group chairman Aburizal Bakrie said he
would form a consortium with several local businesspeople to take
over the ailing Bank Pacific.
Aburizal said after attending a House Budget Commission
hearing that Bank Pacific, after being acquired, would be managed
by Bakrie Group affiliate Bank Nusa International.
Aburizal refused to identify the consortium's potential
members.
He said earlier he had received a commitment from several
investors, including President Soeharto's daughter Siti Hediati,
to provide financial support for Bank Pacific.
But Bank Indonesia (the central bank), which is Bank Pacific's
majority shareholder, has not made any decision on Aburizal's
offer to help salvage Bank Pacific.
The central bank controls 51 percent of Bank Pacific. The
remaining 49 percent is held by the bank's founder, Ibnu Sutowo,
former president of state-owned oil firm Pertamina, and his
family.
Bank Pacific was on the brink of collapse in late 1995 because
of bad loans but the central bank bailed it out.
The bank's bad loans are estimated at Rp 2.1 trillion (US$876
million). At the end of 1995 its total assets were estimated at
Rp 2.2 trillion.
Most of the bad debts were incurred by PT Pacific
International Finance, a company owned by Endang Utari Mokodompit
-- the bank's former president and Ibnu Sutowo's daughter.
Pacific International reportedly used most of its Bank Pacific
earnings in the property sector, including the Lido resort in
West Java which was a disaster.
Bank Indonesia assigned state-owned Bank Negara Indonesia
(BNI) 1946 to manage the bank. BNI injected Rp 500 billion into
the bank and issued money market securities worth Rp 500 billion
which were bought by the central bank.
The central bank has offered the ailing bank to several
investors, including Bank Danamon, which has experience in
acquiring ailing banks.
Bank Danamon, which entered into negotiations with Bank
Indonesia about a possible takeover but is reportedly withdrawing
from the takeover battle.
But a Bank Danamon executive said his bank was never
interested in acquiring Bank Pacific.
Several parties, including a senior minister, have frowned
upon the possibility of Bank Danamon buying Bank Pacific because
it would further strengthen certain groups' dominance of the
financial sector.
Moreover, banking sources said Bank Danamon would not finance
its acquisition entirely with fresh funds. It had asked for
subsidized liquidity credits of up to Rp 1.8 trillion from Bank
Indonesia.
Bank Indonesia director Heru Soepraptomo said last week new
investors interested in acquiring Bank Pacific should not ask for
liquidity credits from the central bank.
"If we are compelled to give liquidity credits, we will
provide a small amount only," Heru said.
Aburizal said the new consortium would finance the takeover
itself. (rid)