Temasek acquires 25 percent NIB shared capital

Temasek Holdings of Singapore announced on Thursday, through its 100 percent-owned subsidiary, Bugis Investments Pte Limited, that it has acquired 25 percent of the issued share capital of NDLC-IFIC Bank Limited (NIB). A notification to this effect was sent to the stock exchanges on Thursday in compliance with the Section 4 of the Companies (Substantial Acquisition of Voting Shares and Take-overs) Ordinance 2002. This is the first investment made in Pakistan by Temasek and speaks well of the perception change regarding Pakistan in the eyes of foreign investors.
The investment in NIB by Temasek is a significant stamp of approval for the policies of the government led by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz. Temasek is widely regarded as a very high quality investor and its presence in Pakistan is expected to assist Pakistan in attracting other quality investors.
Temasek Holdings is the investment arm of the Government of Singapore and is currently rated AAA by Moody''s and Standard & Poor. It was established in 1974 and manages a diversified portfolio of Singapore $90 billion (US $53 billion) in companies that are based in Singapore, Asia and OECD countries.
Temasek Holdings is a major shareholder in companies which are involved in a wide range of businesses, from banking and financial services to ports, shipping and logistics, airlines, telecommunications and media, power and utilities and rail services. Some of the major investments of Temasek Holdings include Singapore Airlines, Singtel, MediaCorp, Capital Land, Singapore Ports Authority, Singapore Power, and Neptune Orient Lines.
It also owns 29 percent of DBS Bank, which is Southeast Asia''s largest banking group by assets and Hong Kong''s fourth largest bank also by assets. It has begun to increase its investments in the Asian banking and financial sector with recent acquisition totalling some US $1.5 billion. These include stakes in Bank Danamon Indonesia, Bank Internasional Indonesia, ICICI Bank in India, Hana Bank in Korea and now in NIB in Pakistan.
Temasek''s entry into NIB is expected to make a significant and positive impact on the bank through Temasek''s support to NIB in its efforts to increase capital and pursue an aggressive expansion plan. NIB was established in 2003 through the merger of the former NDLC and the Pakistani branches of IFIC Bank.
It subsequently acquired the Pakistan operations of Credit Agricole Indosuez Bank and is present in major cities of Pakistan. With its track record of acquisitions, including an aggressive bid for Allied Bank last year, market watchers will be following this development keenly to spot signs of other take-over targets that NIB might identify.