Dharmala and British corp. sign $20m loan accord
Dharmala and British corp. sign $20m loan accord
JAKARTA (JP): Under an agreement signed yesterday, the British
finance institution Commonwealth Development Corporation provided
a loan of US$20 million to PT BBL Dharmala Finance, a publicly
listed leasing company.
Under the agreement, signed by the Dharmala Group's chairman
Suhargo Gondokusumo and the development corporation's chairman
Peter Leslie, Dharmala Finance will disperse the funds in loans
to small and medium-scale entrepreneurs for acquiring plant
machinery and building materials.
Gondokusumo said the five-year loan contract will enable his
company to improve its services and extend the maturity of its
loans to more than five years.
Dharmala Finance director Tjan Soen Eng said the development
corporation has become the third overseas firm extending loans to
his company after International Finance Corporation of the United
States, the Philippines-based Asian Development Bank and the
Asian Finance and Investment Corporation.
Leslie said his company, established by the British government
in 1948 to assist lesser developing countries, has been active in
extending financial assistance to Indonesia since 1971.
The development corporation lendings have so far reached $250
million in a wide range of fields, including manufacturing,
agricultural, shipping and tourism.
Both Leslie and Tjan refused to disclose the rate of the
development corporation's loan for Dharmala Finance, but said it
is a competitive one.
Tjan said Dharmala's assets currently reached Rp 320 billion
($146.31 million), comprising Rp 124 billion from its equity, Rp
178 billion derived from bonds issuance and loans and Rp 18
billion from payable dividends.
Dharmala Finance is a multi-finance firm operating in consumer
finance and factoring, focusing on small and medium-scale
businesses. Leasing is the company's major activity.
The company is 23 percent owned by Bangkok Bank, 51 percent by
PT Dharmala Sakti Sejahtera, one of Dharmala Group's subsidiary,
while the remainder is owned by the investing public. Dharmala's
profit last year reached Rp 10.53 billion, 31 percent higher than
1992's Rp 7.79 billion.(icn)