BCA rushed by depositors on rumors about closure

JAKARTA (JP): Depositors of Bank Central Asia (BCA), the country's largest private bank, rushed the bank's branches, sub- branches and automated teller machines (ATMs) in Jakarta and Medan, North Sumatra, yesterday.

Depositors were seen lining up yesterday afternoon at some BCA branches and ATMs in Greater Jakarta to empty their accounts.

Antara reported from Medan that thousands of BCA depositors in the city also rushed the bank's main branch, five subbranches and ATMs to withdraw their money.

The news agency said the rush in Medan was driven by rumors that BCA's representative office in Singapore was closed and that BCA was another bank to be liquidated by the government.

Some depositors in Jakarta said they joined the rush after hearing a rumor that Liem Sioe Liong, founder and chairman of the giant Salim Group, died.

The Salim Group is the majority shareholder in BCA. The other owners of the bank are President Soeharto's daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana and son Sigit Harjojudanto.

The rumor turned out to be unfounded as Liem made a public appearance yesterday evening at the launching of the Suzuki Satria motorcycle at Pantai Indah Kapuk, North Jakarta.

The Satria is manufactured by a company under PT Indomobil Sukses Internasional, an automotive arm of the Salim Group.

"I'm fine. I've just returned from abroad, from Singapore, meeting a friend there for two days," Liem, also known as Soedono Salim, said at the launching ceremony. "Don't be so easily influenced by baseless rumors," he said.

BCA's corporate communications division said in a statement that its representative office in Singapore was still open and running well.

Some BCA ATMs carried an announcement from the bank's treasury division, which said that all rumors about the bank were untrue.

Depositors in Jakarta were still seen yesterday evening lining up at a few BCA ATMs as some other BCA ATMs already ran out of money.

A customer named Sulastri said she heard in the morning about the rumor of Liem.

"A friend called me and said Liem Sioe Liong was dead and suggested that I close my account at BCA," she said. "I know it's just a rumor, but I think I better get prepared," she said.

She withdrew Rp 200,000 (US$60) yesterday.

Another customer named Joshua said he did not believe the rumor and would not withdraw his money.

"That's only a silly game created by silly people," he said. "I withdrew Rp 200,000 because I need it to pay for my phone bill."

Several employees of the bank only smiled when they were asked about the rumor.

"Come on. You know that it's not true. If it was true, I would go crazy ... I need my paycheck to support my family," said an employee who asked for anonymity.

He acknowledged, however, that several BCA branches, like those in Citraland Mall and Asemka, were flooded with customers withdrawing their money.

"The bank is fine. There's nothing to worry about. You see there, the cashier is still open. You can withdraw as much of your money as you want. No problem," he said.

BCA's corporate communications officials refused to comment on the reported rush that occurred at several BCA offices in Jakarta and Medan.

"You might want to direct that question straight to Pak Liem," an official said.

She refused to comment on the number of customers who made withdrawals yesterday. "We don't have any figure. We don't have the report." (team)