EXPANDING OVERSEAS:Upon the completion of the transaction, CTBC will be the first local financial services provider to secure a Malaysian license, a spokewoman said

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 16, 2016
By: Lisa Wang / Staff reporter

CTBC Financial Holding Co (中信金控) yesterday said it had clinched a NT$6.1 billion (US$189 million) deal to fully acquire Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC’s (RBS) Malaysian unit, accelerating its expansion into other Asian markets.

The deal came just two weeks after CTBC announced on March 29 it was buying a 35.6 percent stake in Thailand-based LH Financial Group PLC for NT$15.4 billion.

The government has been pushing local lenders to make overseas acquisitions amid fierce competition at home. Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) in January acquired a 20 percent stake in the Philippines’ Rizal Commercial Banking Corp and a 40 percent stake in Indonesia’s PT Bank Mayapada International through its life insurance unit, Cathay Life Insurance Co (國泰人壽), while Fubon Financial Holding Co (富邦金控) purchased a 48 percent stake in South Korea’s Hyundai Life Insurance Co in December last year.

The latest investment by CTBC makes the company the first local financial services provider to expand to Malaysia, the company said.     [FULL  STORY]