Shareholders of Lippo, Niaga approve merger

JAKARTA: Shareholders of Indonesia's PT Bank Niaga Tbk and PT Bank Lippo Tbk have approved plans to merge the two, Bank Niaga said on its website.

The plan is in line with Indonesian central bank plans to consolidate the country's 130 banks, which have total assets of around US$200 billion (RM648 billion), through mergers and acquisitions.

The merger is subject to approvals from regulatory authorities in Indonesia and Malaysia, the bank said in its website statement.

Malaysian state investment arm Khazanah Nasional Bhd controls Bank Niaga and Bank Lippo through its indirect subsidiary, Bumiputra-Commerce.

"The shareholders' approvals bring us one step closer to completing this merger for growth," Datuk Nazir Razak, chief executive of Bumiputra-Commerce, said in the statement.

The legal process may be completed on October 1 and their businesses are expected to be fully integrated by the fourth quarter of 2009, the statement said.

Khazanah indirectly owns a 93 per cent stake in Lippo and has an indirect 64 per cent share in Niaga through Bumiputra-Commerce.

Shareholders of both lenders also appointed Arwin Rasyid as bank president after the merger, Niaga said.

Arwin is the former president director of PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia, the country's largest telecoms firm. - Reuters