Merrill Lynch to organize conference on capital market

Merrill Lynch to organize conference on capital market

JAKARTA (JP): Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., a United States-based
securities firm, will organize a conference on the future of the
Indonesian capital market here on Nov. 14-15, an executive said
here yesterday.

The executive, Mitchell Shivers, said the conference will
explore the opportunities in the capital market bill, which is
currently being deliberated in the House of Representatives.

The bill, when enacted, is likely to foster the development of
an asset management industry, particularly open-end mutual funds,
he said.

The firm's managing director for Asia Pacific, Brian A.
Murdock, based in Hong Kong, announced that the seminar is to be
hosted by an investment advisory subsidiary, Merrill Lynch Asset
Management, in cooperation with the Capital Market Supervisory
Agency (Bapepam) at the Grand Hyatt hotel.

"Our goal through this conference is to help encourage the
development of the capital market industry and advance asset
management capabilities in Indonesia," Murdock said after
inspecting the subsidiary's new office.

He said Merrill Lynch also plans to establish a joint venture,
to be called PT Merrill Lynch Indonesia, with PT Persada Kian
Lestari on Oct. 26.

Merrill Lynch will hold an 80-percent stake in the planned
joint venture while its Indonesian counterpart will hold the
other 20 percent, he said.

Murdock said that the planned joint company will apply for a
license to conduct an institutional securities business in
Indonesia that will include corporate finance, trading,
underwriting, asset management and research.

Merrill Lynch, jointly with PT Danareksa, led the US$1.16
billion privatization of the state-owned PT Indosat, which listed
its shares on the New York Stock Exchange last year.(kod)