Bank Arta Prima needs proper handling: House
Bank Arta Prima needs proper handling: House
JAKARTA (JP): Legislators warned the government yesterday to
be careful how it settled the ailing Bank Arta Prima problem
because mishandling could have a political impact that could
affect the whole banking industry.
Efforts to rescue Bank Arta Prima have been complicated by
what analysts say was an alleged promissory notes scam related to
the bank.
Moreover, the Gunung Agung group is now trying to get the bank
back from the Artha Graha group.
Deputy chairman of the House of Representatives' Armed Forces
faction, Andaja Lestari, was quoted by Antara as saying yesterday
that the government and Bank Indonesia should keep political
interests out of the issue.
A Golkar faction House member, Bomer Pasaribu, shared
Lestari's concern, saying that how the Bank Arta Prima problem
was solved would affect the credibility of Bank Indonesia as
guardian of the banking industry.
The alleged promissory notes scam came to light when the
widely diversified Artha Graha group bought Bank Arta Prima on
May 17 from PT Jagata Primabumi, which had bought it from the
Gunung Agung group.
Reports say the Artha Graha group bought the bank through Bank
Indonesia which had taken it over from PT Jagata Primabumi
because of a promissory notes scandal.
When buying Bank Arta Prima from Gunung Agung, PT Jagata had
agreed to take over Gunung Agung's debts to the bank of Rp 187
billion and to other financial institutions of Rp 177 billion,
reports said.
The debts
PT Jagata asked Gunung Agung to issue promissory notes
(promes) worth Rp 324 billion (US$94.3 million) to settle the
debts.
Jagata failed to settle the promes.
The Artha Graha group promised to inject fresh funds into the
bank but refused to take over the Rp 324-billion promes although
they were all underwritten by the bank.
Six businessmen were arrested recently by police for the scam.
They included Made Oka Masagung, a former Gunung Agung majority
shareholder, Kim Johannes Mulia, from PT Jagata, and former
directors and commissioners of Bank Arta Prima.
Gunung Agung, the original owner, is now trying to regain the
bank.
Last week it began suing PT Jagata for US$612 million over the
purchase agreement for the debt-ridden bank and demanded the
court return the bank to it because PT Jagata had breached their
contract of sale.
The Gunung Agung group, founded by the late H. Masagung in
1953, was taken over by PT Kosgoro and PT Trimuda in 1994 when it
ran into financial trouble which later forced it to sell the
bank. Kosgoro currently controls 80 percent of Gunung Agung.
According to banking sources, efforts to resolve the problem
were underway with the help of Hayono Isman, state minister of
youth affairs and sports, who is also a senior Kosgoro executive.
Gunung Agung's president, Lego Nirwhono, had reportedly
invited an Artha Graha group shareholder, Tommy Winata, to
discuss Bank Arta Prima's transfer to Gunung Agung Investment, a
unit of the Gunung Agung group.
Tommy reportedly rejected the invitation. (pwn)