JSM Financial: HSBC could still attempt to acquire a stake in South Korea’s KEB.

March 17, 2010 - PRLog -- Korea’s fourth largest lender, Hana Financial Group and Kookmin Bank are expected by analysts to bid in an upcoming auction for a 51% stake in that nation’s sixth largest lender, Korea Exchange Bank after U.S. private equity firm Lone Star officially put it back on the auction block recently.

There is wide speculation that a foreign banks may still participate and help push up the asking price in the process.

Currently, it is felt that Europe’s largest bank, HSBC is most likely to fill that role, JSM Financial believes. HSBC earlier announced its intention to buy Lone Star’s stake in a deal   which has since collapsed. Korean media has reported that the European giant has been courting KEB as far back as 2007 when Kookmin was attempting to buy the lender. A deal which also failed.

JSM Financial believes that HSBC’s head of South Korean operations, late lasted year, indicated that he was on the lookout for new opportunities when he told reporters that the bank was always open to interesting offers.

Investment bankers and analysts insist that it is too early in the process to identify any affirmative bidders in a deal that is likely to take the best part of the year to finalize.

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