By FIL C. SIONIL
Lippo Bank, the Singaporean-partner of Export and Industry Bank (EIB), is reportedly increasing its interest in the bank to reach a maximum of 40 percent allowed for an offshore institution.
A high-placed industry source told Business Bulletin that EIB management is finalizing the deal with Lippo Bank before any stockholders meeting can be called.
"This is the reason why the annual stockholders meeting has been postponed," the source said, citing the latest EIB disclosure before the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE).
Lippo Bank owns 825,974,627 shares in EIB, roughly equivalent to 30 percent equity in the bank. Under the liberalized environment, foreign institutions/banks are allowed to own up to 40 percent interest in a domestic lender.
EIB, before the Halloween long break, informed the PSE of the resetting of the bank’s shareholders meeting scheduled, which had earlier been scheduled sometime in October.
Instead, the meeting will be held "sometime with the year at such date and time to be determined by the Bank’s executive committee as they may deem appropriate and convenient," the EIB said.
The source the new shareholders meeting schedule will be announced soon after the deal has been inked, which the EIB management will then submit to the regulators for approval.
It was noted that EIB has been one of the actively traded bank shares in the bourse. Sources said Lippo Bank through its brokers could be the one accumulating shares.
From year to date, total volume traded hit 859,961,212 shares and priced or valued at
P677.06 million, substantially higher than the 133,866,205 shares traded in the whole of 2004 and valued at P64.957 million.
"The data clearly show someone or somebody has been buying. . . accumulating shares," the source said.
On October 27 of this year, EIB was last traded at a price of 55 centavos per share. Its best high price in 52 weeks was at
P1.04 per share and low was recorded at 38 centavos per share.
EIB share has a par value of
P1.00. Total outstanding shares stood at P2.753 billion with a market capitalization of P1.486 billion.
Sergio Ortiz-Luis, EIB chair, has said the bank is open to any proposal to "take a strategic partner provided there is synergy" that could further strengthen the bank’s foothold in the industry.
In 2001, EIB bought the assets of Urban Bank, an institution founded by Arsenio M. Bartolome III, a few months after it was foreclosed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas due financial difficult.
To date, it has 50 branches strategically located in major business hubs nationwide and will continue expanding in growth areas where it will be able to extend its full range of commercial banking services.
