Temasek to join bid for Bank Danamon

Temasek to join bid for Bank Danamon

Singapore's investment arm Temasek Holdings was reported on
Thursday as having brought Deutsche Bank on board in place of
Goldman Sachs to advise on a bid for a 51 percent stake in
Indonesia's Bank Danamon.

The move could see the German bank taking an equity stake in
the US$400 million deal as well, sources told The Business Times.

The Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) has previously
said it would prefer the stake going to a commercial bank or a
consortium that includes a bank.

International and regional financial institutions, including
Taiwan's Fubon Financial and HSBC, are said to be among the 17
bidders.

Bank Danamon is currently owned by IBRA, which took it over
following the Asian financial crisis in 1997. It now needs to
sell a 51 percent stake in Indonesia's fifth largest bank as part
of International Monetary Fund-led reforms.

Preliminary bids must be made by this weekend.

"From what I hear, Deutsche Bank will replace Goldman Sachs as
Temasek's financial adviser and will co-invest 50 million U.S.
dollars in Bank Danamon," a source told the newspaper.

Both Deutsche Bank and Temasek would not comment on the
reports.

Fubon, one of Taiwan's largest financial services groups, is
regarded as a leading contender for Bank Danamon.

With a market capitalization of $6.5 billion and Citibank as a
shareholder, Fubon could provide stiff competition to the other
bidders, observers said. -- DPA