'Bank Papan Sejahtera should retain housing role': Bank Indonesia chief
'Bank Papan Sejahtera should retain housing role': Bank Indonesia chief
JAKARTA (JP): Bank Indonesia (central bank) Governor J.
Soedradjad Djiwandono wants the new majority shareholder of the
publicly listed Bank Papan Sejahtera (BPS) not to change the
bank's core business.
He said that BPS, which is partly owned by the central bank,
should maintain its operational status as the main provider of
loans for the construction of medium-scale housing.
"The central bank will also closely monitor the operation of
BPS so that it will not be used only by certain groups of
people," Soedradjad said over the weekend. He was referring to
the widely reported change in the majority shareholding of the
bank, which is listed on the Jakarta and Surabaya stock
exchanges.
Jopie Widjaya, the president of PT Steady Safe, a public
transportation firm listed on the Jakarta Stock Exchange, was
reported to have successfully acquired a 51 percent stake in BPS
through transactions on the Jakarta and Surabaya exchanges.
Jopie was not available to confirm the news, but sources said
that at least 23 percent of the bank's shares were purchased
through the two local markets under Jopie's name and another 28
percent under his affiliated companies.
The sources said that the new majority shareholder was likely
to propose a change to the bank's management at the bank's annual
shareholders' meeting this week.
Procedures
Soedradjad acknowledged that the sales of BPS's shares to
Jopie and his affiliated companies were in accordance with
existing procedures.
According to the existing laws, a publicly listed bank should
immediately report to the central bank if 35 percent or more of
its shares fall into the control of a single individual or
institutional investor. The acquisition of over 50 percent of
bank's shares by a single individual or institutional investor
are also subject to approval from the Minister of Finance.
Commenting on the possible change in the bank's management,
Soedradjad said that it would be approved only if it meets
existing requirements and procedures.
Before the takeover, 13.11 percent of BPS was owned by Bank
Indonesia, 3.49 percent by PT Jasindo, a state-owned insurance
firm, 5.69 percent by PT Jiwasraya, a state-owned life insurance
firm, 11.13 percent by Bank PDFCI, 6.8 percent by AJB Bumiputra,
a mutual life insurer, 12.68 percent by REI Windu, a real estate
developer, 8.07 percent by the International Finance Corporation,
an affiliate of the World Bank, and 10.66 percent by Friesch
Groningsche Hypotheekbank. (hen)