INVESTMENT BANKING/ BANK
KEB HANA BANK

South Korea’s KEB Hana Bank said Thursday it is aggressively pursuing foreign strategic investments for expansion and has become the second-largest shareholder of Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam.

The nation’s third-largest commercial bank has agreed to buy 15 percent stake, or 603,302,706 new shares, of BIDV from the State Bank of Vietnam. The deal marks the biggest acquisition in a foreign bank by a Korean lender, according to officials.

The Vietnamese central bank was holding 95.28 percent stake in BIDV. KEB Hana Bank paid 1.15 trillion won ($975.6 billion) for the stake, with which it expects to vitalize its New South Policy in earnest. 

Until now, the bank has been focusing on providing services for Korean companies in Vietnam with its two branches -- in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh.

Lenders from Vietnam plan to expand their financial business and further cooperate with other affiliates of Hana Financial Group. To do so, KEB Hana will offer its know-how in risk management and private financing to improve BIDV’s asset portfolio, officials said.

“We sincerely appreciate the opportunity to grow with BIDV. By providing advanced financial services, we hope the two banks will play a key role as a financial bridge between Korea and Vietnam,” said Hana Financial Group Chairman and CEO Kim Jung-tai.

BIDV, one of the top four commercial banks along with Vietcom Bank, Vietin Bank and Agri Bank, was founded in 1957. The state-run commercial bank has various subsidiaries in securities, insurance, lease and asset management services.

Its total assets stood at 66.3 trillion won and posted a net profit of 380.9 billion won last year.

By Jie Ye-eun (yeeun@heraldcorp.com)