Hana Financial Investment eyeing takeover of Hana Bank's Hong Kong unit
Hana Financial Group's building in central Seoul / Courtesy of Hana Financial Group
Hana Financial Investment said Monday that it was seeking to take over the Hong Kong subsidiary of its affiliate Hana Bank as part of efforts to tap into the Asian financial hub.
Hana Financial Investment is considering a plan to purchase a 100 percent stake in KEB Hana Global Finance Ltd. for about $100 million, a company official said.
"We are mulling several options for the envisioned acquisition," the official said. "It is going through an internal decision-making process and nothing has been finalized yet."
If the plan becomes a reality, KEB Hana Global Finance would be Hana Financial Investment's wholly owned subsidiary in the Chinese special administrative region.
Hana Financial Investment has been ramping up efforts to make forays into overseas markets, especially the Asian financial hub of Hong Kong, and Southeast Asia with its high growth potential.
In late April, the company signed a deal to purchase a 35 percent stake in Vietnam-based brokerage BIDV Securities for 142 billion won ($111 million), which would make it the second-largest shareholder of BIDV Securities, the 11th-largest brokerage house in Vietnam.
Hana Financial Investment is the brokerage arm of Hana Financial Group, a major financial holding group in Korea whose flagship is Hana Bank. (Yonhap)