IBRA exceeds 2001 target

IBRA exceeds 2001 target

Dadan Wijaksana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) said on
Thursday that it had raised a total of Rp 27.98 trillion (about
US$2.7 billion) in cash and Rp 10.6 trillion worth of
recapitalized bonds, slightly exceeding its target for this
year's state budget.

IBRA chief I Putu Gde Ary Suta told a press conference on
Thursday that the agency had fulfilled its duty in terms of asset
sales, at least for this year.

"Up to today, IBRA has delivered 27.98 trillion rupiah in cash
to the state," Ary Suta said.

"Despite the harsh criticisms that we have had to endure,
we're glad that we have finally finished the job for this year,"
he added.

The agency has been the target of criticisms for its slow
progress on asset sales, raising concerns that it might be unable
to meet the cash target needed to help plug the state budget
deficit.

Set up in 1998, IBRA controls over Rp 600 trillion worth of
assets transferred by indebted bank owners and closed and
recapitalized banks, and is mandated to restructure and sell
those assets.

Banks handed over their nonperforming loans to IBRA in
exchange for recapitalization bonds.

According to Ary Suta, the proceeds were mostly generated by
the agency's Asset Management Credit (AMC) division, Asset
Management Investment (AMI) division, and the Bank Restructuring
Unit (BRU).

Of the total earnings, Rp 11.67 trillion came from the sale of
assets under the supervision of PT Holdiko Perkasa, a holding
company set up by the agency to oversee the assets formerly
belonging to the Salim Group.

As for next year, IBRA will be relying on the sale of assets
within the AMC division, which has been targeted to raise some Rp
22.21 trillion from its core assets disposal, or around 52
percent of the agency's target of Rp 42.8 trillion in cash and
bonds.

Other major contributors will be the sale of assets within the
AMI division, including the sale of several parent companies
under PT Holdiko Perkasa and PT Bentala Kartika Abadi.

In the banking sector, aside from the long-stalled Bank
Central Asia (BCA) divestment, IBRA will also pin its hopes on
the sales of Bank Niaga, Bank Danamon and Bank Lippo.

IBRA was supposed to have completed the sale of BCA and Bank
Niaga this year, but had to delay the process due to the current
weak market conditions and a protracted debate with legislators.