HSBC not planning M&As in S. Korea: head

SEOUL, Oct. 7 (Yonhap) -- HSBC Holdings Plc does not have plans for mergers and
acquisitions (M&As) in South Korea following its pullout of a deal to buy Korea
Exchange Bank (KEB) in September last year, the head of its Korean operations
said Wednesday.
"At the moment, we have no plans for M&As," Matthew Deakin, head of HSBC's Korean
operations, told a press conference, when asked about the possibility it could
again seek to purchase KEB, controlled by U.S. buyout fund Lone Star Funds.
The sale of South Korea's fifth-largest lender has been stalled since British
bank HSBC pulled out of a deal to buy a 51.02 percent stake in the bank in
September last year amid the global financial turmoil.
But John Grayken, chairman of Lone Star, said recently that Lone Star is seeking
to sell its controlling stakes in KEB within six to 12 months, raising
expectations that a wave of potential takeovers in the local banking sector may
start soon.
In September 2007, HSBC agreed to buy KEB for US$6.3 billion, but the deal
remained deadlocked as the national financial watchdog withheld its approval,
citing legal disputes over Lone Star's 2003 purchase of KEB.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)