Baring Indonesia resumes trading

Baring Indonesia resumes trading

JAKARTA (JP): PT Baring Securities Indonesia (BSI), the local arm of the bankrupt British merchant bank Barings, resumed trading on the Jakarta Stock Exchange yesterday after a week's delay.

"It is business as usual for us," BSI president John Marshall told reporters during a press conference yesterday.

The Capital Market Supervisory Board (Bapepam) gave its approval for BSI -- which withdrew from trading voluntarily for a two week period after its parent company collapsed due to derivatives trading losses in Singapore -- to resume trading shortly after trading started yesterday morning.

Marshall said that Bapepam's approval indicated that the Indonesian authorities are satisfied with the new ownership of the securities firm following the billion dollar acquisition of Barings by the ING Group of the Netherlands last week.

Marshall, who was accompanied by ING executives, said that the ING's support will allow BSI to "have even more to offer in the future."

In the meantime, Cees Maas, an ING executive boardmember, said that BSI will maintain its current management team.

Maas also confirmed that ING's holding in BSI will not overlap with ING's existing stake in PT ING Bank since the two are involved in complimentary activities.(hdj)