IBRA set to sell Astra, BCA, other liquid assets
IBRA set to sell Astra, BCA, other liquid assets
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA)
is preparing to sell several of its most liquid assets this
fiscal year in a bid to meet the Rp 17 trillion fund target to be
raised in the period ending March 2000, the agency's deputy
chairman Farid Harianto said on Thursday.
Farid said the asset disposal included plans to sell its stake
in publicly listed auto giant PT Astra International, cementmaker
PT Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa and Hong Kong listed First
Pacific.
He said the agency also planned to sell its stake in
nationalized Bank Central Asia, integrated shrimp industry PT
Dipasena and a plantation firm through an initial public offering
(IPO).
"We will cooperate closely with the management of each company
when implementing our plans," Farid told The Jakarta Post and
Kompas in an interview.
He said the agency planned to sell about half of its 40
percent stake in Astra.
Asked about the size of the BCA IPO, Farid said: "It will be
up to 30 percent."
Farid declined to name the plantation firm.
Farid also said IBRA had identified a recapitalized private
bank, in which the government had at least an 80 percent stake,
to be included as a backup in the asset disposal plans.
IBRA is in control of various fixed assets and has substantial
holdings in companies handed over by former bank owners to repay
debts to the government.
The agency is currently the single controlling shareholder in
Astra.
Reports earlier said that Astra founder and former owner
William Soeryadjaya were teaming up with New-Bridge Capital and
Gilbert Global Equity Capital to buy a 19.9 percent stake in
Astra.
William was forced to sell his Astra stake in 1993 to help pay
the obligations of his eldest son's dissolved Bank Summa.
Farid said he was only made aware of William's plans from
newspaper reports.
IBRA earlier said it planned to float BCA either in December
or in January.
The agency has appointed Lehman Brothers, Merryl Lynch, PT
Bahana Securities and PT Danareksa Securities to lead the BCA
IPO.
BCA, the country's largest private bank, was nationalized by
the government last year after the bank breached the legal
lending limit.
In addition to owning various companies, IBRA also controls
bad loans worth some Rp 230 trillion, and holds a minimum 80
percent stake in several major private banks recapitalized by the
government.
IBRA, an agency of the Ministry of Finance, has set a target
of raising some Rp 17 trillion in the 1999/2000 fiscal year in a
bid to help finance the country's bank restructuring costs during
the period.
Farid said the agency had so far raised some Rp 8 trillion.
He said the agency needed to sell liquid assets in order to
quickly raise essential funds, but added that it would try to
maximize the sale proceeds.
"If the domestic political situation improves after the
presidential election, we're optimistic we will meet the target,"
he said.
Indonesia is set to hold a presidential election on October
20. The country has been plagued with rioting and unrest in the
lead-up to the election.
"We're now making (asset disposal) preparations, but if the
political situation continues to deteriorate in December we might
have to call off the plans," Farid said.
He acknowledged that the Bank Bali scandal had "demoralized"
IBRA staff, and hampered the agency's programs.
The previous House of Representatives called on President B.J.
Habibie to suspend senior IBRA officials including its chairman
Glenn S. Yusuf, deputy chairman Pande Lubis and Farid himself for
their alleged involvement in the bank scandal.
The Bank Bali scandal centers around the "illegal" transfer of
some US$80 million from the bank to a private firm linked to the
inner circle of Habibie. (rei)