IBRA, Holdiko sell shares in First Pacific

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) and PT Holdiko Perkasa have raised HK$394.6 million, equivalent to Rp 420 billion (about US$47 million), in cash from the sales of their shares in the Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd.

IBRA said here on Monday that its 143.03 million shares in the company and Holdiko's 34.45 million shares were sold on Aug. 16 at HK$2.28 per share.

The price represented a 4.8 percent discount to the average closing prices in the two weeks prior to the placing, it said, adding that ING Barings had acted as the placing agent for the transaction.

"We are confident the recent offerings of assets will enable us to achieve AMI's target of Rp 7.2 trillion by the end of the fiscal year," Dasa Sutantio, Director of IBRA's Asset Management Investment (AMI) unit said in a statement.

First Pacific, founded in 1981 in Hong Kong, is a conglomerate that owns and operates businesses in telecommunications, property and banking sectors.

It has branches in 15 countries, with primary investments in Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Hong Kong.

First Pacific was the fifth of Holdiko's assets offered to the market this year.

The others were shares in PT Astra International early this year, its offering of Wisma BCA and the 17.25 percent interest in PT Karimun Granite last month, and last week the 100 percent interest in Mosquito Coil Group.

Holdiko was established last year in connection with the debt settlement agreement between the Salim Group and IBRA.

As part of the agreement, the Salim Group transferred shares and assets in more than 100 companies to Holdiko, which will subsequently transfer proceeds from the sale of the assets to IBRA.

Holdiko Director Scott Coffey said the company was preparing to dispose of a number of other assets and would name them in the near future.

Separately, IBRA also announced that it has received more than Rp 24.52 billion from the auction of properties in Bali formerly owned by Bank Aken, BDNI, Bank Umum Nasional, Bank Mashill and Bank PSP.

IBRA's Group Head for Non-Core Asset Administration Jimi Hadi said in a statement that it succeeded in selling 15 of the 17 properties and achieved a price 87 percent higher than estimated.

Later this month, IBRA will auction properties in Semarang, Central Java; Bandung, West Java; Medan, North Sumatra; Pontianak, West Kalimantan; Balikpapan, East Kalimantan; and Manado, North Sulawesi. (10)