MUFG seeks to
raise stake in
VietinBank
MUFG BANK, a unit of Bank of Mitsubishi
UFJ Financial Group, is seeking to raise
its stake in VIETINBANK to 50%, state-
run Vietnam Television reported last
Wednesday, quoting a senior executive of
the Japanese bank.
“We have invested in Vietnam since
ûANDûWANTûTOûINCREASEûOWNERSHIPûINû
VietinBank to 50% of registered capital,”
646ûQUOTEDû-5&'û$EPUTYû0RESIDENTû%IICHIû
Yoshikawa as saying.
-5&'û"ANKûNOWûOWNSûûOFûTHEû
6IETNAMESEûLENDER ûACCORDINGûTOû2ElNITIVû
data.
To increase its stake to 50%, MUFG
would need special approval from the
government or Vietnam would need to
RAISEûITSûCURRENTûûFOREIGNûOWNERSHIPû
limit in banks. It also means the
government would need to sell more
VietinBank shares.
Yoshikawa was speaking at a meeting
with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen
Xuan Phuc and senior Vietnamese
GOVERNMENTûOFlCIALSûINCLUDINGûTHEû
governor of State Bank of Vietnam, which
OWNSûûOFû6IETIN"ANK û2ElNITVûDATAû
showed.
“The government welcomes investors
joining Vietnamese banks, especially
foreign investors joining weak banks...and
can consider letting foreign investors own
100% of those banks,” VTV quoted SBV
'OVERNORû,Eû-INHû(UNGûASûSAYING
The government has said foreign
investors can own up to 100% of weak
Vietnamese banks in an effort to reform
the sector that was once weighed down by
bad debts.
VietinBank, the country’s fourth biggest
listed bank by market capitalisation,
is not a weak bank by the Vietnamese
GOVERNMENTSûDElNITIONû"UTû'OVERNORû
,Eû-INHû(UNGûSAIDûINCREASINGûCAPITALûINû
VietinBank is necessary.
“Increasing capital in VietinBank is
ESSENTIALûTOûENSUREûTHEûBANKSûlNANCIALû
capacity,” Hung was quoted as saying.
MAI NGUYENUS probes
StanChart over
Iran sanctions
US authorities are investigating whether
STANDARD CHARTERED violated sanctions
against Iran a year after it reached an
agreement with prosecutors over similar
allegations.
4HEûBANKSûCHIEFûEXECUTIVEûOFlCERû"ILLû
Winters said in a memo sent to staff that
“the vast majority of the payments under
investigation pre-date 2012, and none
occurred after 2014”.
2ECENTûMEDIAûREPORTSûHAVEûSAIDûTHATû
3TAN#HARTûMAYûBEûFACINGûAûlNEûOFûAROUNDû
US$1.5bn for sanctions violations related to
)RAN ûINûADDITIONûTOûTHEû53MûITûALREADYû
paid in 2012 for similar alleged violations
between 2001 and 2007.
US authorities are investigating alleged
breaches from 2007 onwards and are
focusing their attention in particular
on possible violations after the 2012
settlement.
StanChart has been subject to a deferred
prosecution agreement with the US since
2012 for allegedly breaking sanctions on
)RAN û,IBYAûANDûOTHERûCOUNTRIES
In July, the emerging markets lender
ANNOUNCEDûTHATûITSû$0!ûHADûBEENûEXTENDEDû
for a third time because its compliance
programme still did not meet the necessary
standards.
StanChart is one of several banks to have
ENTEREDûINTOûAû$0!ûWITHû53ûAUTHORITIESû
over allegations of sanctions violations and
money laundering, including rival HSBC.
)Nû$ECEMBERû û(3"#ûAGREEDûTOûPAYû
53NûANDûENTEREDûINTOûAûlVE
YEARû$0!û
over allegations it failed to prevent Mexican
cartels from laundering hundreds of
millions of dollars through the bank.
,ASTû$ECEMBER ûITûANNOUNCEDûTHATû
THEû$0!ûHADûEXPIREDûAFTERûITSûEFFORTSûTOû
strengthen its sanctions and anti-money
laundering controls had reached the
required standard.
THOMAS BLOTTUS authorities are investigating
alleged breaches from 2007
onwards and are focusing
their attention in particular on
possible violations after the
2012 settlement.
IN BRIEF
ANZ
Royal Commission hits profitsAUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP has
flagged that its full year cash profit for 2018
would take a A$824m hit because of higher
charges, mostly related to the country’s Royal
Commission.
Australia’s number two lender said last Monday
that more than half that amount, around
US$421m, would stem from compensation to
customers that received inadequate advice
or were charged fees for advice they did not
receive.
The remaining charges comprise a A$206m
writedown on the value of the IT systems for its
international business, A$159m in restructuring
costs mostly related to technology and A$38m
in legal costs related to the Royal Commission.
The Royal Commission, which has detailed
widespread wrongdoing across the financial
services industry since it was launched in
December, has revealed how Australia’s largest
banks often charged clients for advice they did
not receive. In the case of Commonwealth Bank
of Australia, Australia’s largest bank by assets,
this even included billing dead customers.
ANZ’s announcement comes only a few weeks
after rival Westpac Banking Corporation
said that its full year cash earnings would be
A$235m lower because of higher provisions,
mostly stemming from the Royal Commission.
ANZ said that the charges related to issues
identified from its reviews to date, but cautioned
that its reviews remained ongoing.
It is due to report its full year earnings on
October 31.ASEAN Capital Markets Forum
Sustainability bond standards launchedThe ASEAN Capital Markets Forum last week
launched Social and Sustainability bond
standards to speed up the development of
sustainable finance in South-East Asia.
The new standards will enhance the
transparency, consistency and uniformity of
these bonds, in turn reducing due diligence
costs and helping global investors make better
investment decisions, ACMF said in a release.
The frameworks build on last year’s successful
introduction of a Green bond framework under
which five debt offerings from Malaysia and
Singapore have since been sold. Indonesia also
launched the first ASEAN sovereign Green sukuk
under the framework in February this year.
The standards for Social and Sustainability
bonds are based on the International
Capital Market Association Social bond and
Sustainability bond guidelines. Funds raisedPlease send job moves to
[email protected]