UOB to buy Philippine bank

UOB to buy Philippine bank

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): Singapore's United Overseas Bank Ltd.'s planned acquisition of Westmont Bank in the Philippines is seen as part of long-term strategy that will give it access to the country's retail market, analysts said.

The Singapore bank said late Thursday it plans to take a controlling interest in the small retail bank for S$132 million (US$1=S$1.6864).

The announcement provided few details of the acquisition, and UOB Friday declined to provide additional information, saying that approval from various authorities is still pending.

"This is a long-term buy for UOB," said a banking analyst with a European research house in Singapore, adding that it will take time before UOB can reap benefits from the purchase.

Westmont, which was run by Edgardo Espiritu before he became the country's finance secretary, is a private bank with assets of 22 billion pesos. More importantly, Westmont has a network of 97 branches, which could have been the attraction for UOB, said the banking analyst.